Nya's Journey to Where She Was Yesterday
by Astrid16
Summary: After accidentally using the powers of Past and Future to go back in time, Zane has to cope with watching Nya and Jay begin their new lives together. But even with this broken heart, the Nindroid is determined to protect the couple and their unborn child from Cryptor's cruel hand. Part 3 in my 'Nya's Journey' trilogy. Rated T for romance and blood/gore.
1. Guardian Angel

**I would ****_recommend_ looking over the first two _Nya's Journey_ fanficsbefore reading this one, but it's not required, of course. :) **

**Finally! Sorry for the wait, I finally found the time to get this written up. Just a reminder, please don't expect any updates next week. I'll be extremely busy, sorry. :) **

**Disclaimer****: I do not own Ninjago. If I did, the Cole/Nya/Jay love triangle would not exist, and Pythor would have friggin' stayed dead back in season 3. (My least favorite snake. Skales forever!)**

* * *

**Guardian Angel**

* * *

Nya's eyelids fluttered open slowly and skimmed over her deep, dusky grey surroundings. The bed was warm, but that was partially because the larger body of her fiancé was under the blankets with her.

A warm, sort of fuzzy feeling tickled her chest as she peered through the darkness at his large back. As was proper for any person at this early hour, he was sleeping soundly.

So what had woken her up? It could not be later than three-thirty in the morning. She winced and hugged her relatively flat stomach.

So that's what it was. To her dismay, the unmistakeable feeling of nausea churned her insides.

Reluctantly, Nya reached for the edge of the blanket and threw it away from her body. She shivered as her bare feet hit the floor. She scooped her thin, cotton robe up in her hands and wrapped it around her like a blanket as she darted through the door. It didn't take a genius to figure out that a pregnant woman needed to be close to a toilet twenty-four hours a day.

The hall was dark and silent, save for the sounds of her feet as they carried her to the bathroom. She closed the door and locked it behind her, then got to her knees next to the basin and allowed her stomach to reject last night's dinner. She shuddered as she stood up and washed her hands and face. Her knees trembled as she pressed her palms to the granite counter and examined her eyes in the mirror. They were slightly pink, and the bluish bags under her eyes were screaming the inhumanity of being woken up at such an early hour.

Taking a step back, she pressed her hands over the material of her spaghetti-strapped shirt and examined her belly. How much longer would she be able to hide it? Jay wanted her to tell everyone right away; he was so proud and excited to become a dad, and wanted to show his unborn child off to the world as soon as possible.

_After today,_ she told herself. _When the wedding is over, I'll tell them._

A soft knock sounds on the door, making her jump back and wrap her robe around herself in a flash. "Nya?" Zane's soft, whispery voice filtered through the cracks in the door. "Are you all right?"

She should have known. Zane was usually up by this time, wandering around like a ghost as everyone else slept.

Nya tied the rope in a quick knot around her midsection and opened the door. She managed to wrap her mind around the muscles she needed to project a smile and did so as enthusiastically as possible. "G'morning," she whispered. "Sleep well?"

Zane nodded once. He looked excited. "Come with me," he said. "I want to show you something."

Nya held out a hand, which the Nindroid stared at skeptically. "Take it," she whispered. "I'm still tired, and my eyes don't work very well in the dark."

Hesitantly, Zane did so. He pulled her down the hall and through the front doors of the Garmadon monastery.

"What's this about?" Nya asked as she was pulled out into the center of the courtyard.

Zane let go of her hand and pointed at the sky. "Up there," he whispered.

Nya did so. The sky was black, with the slightest hint of indigo trying to make itself known. Stars shimmered brightly all around her in a shimmering dome. "It's pretty," she said through a yawn. "Just like the stars we see every night."

"No," Zane insisted. He pointed again. "Look."

Nya turned her head to the sky once more and watched the stars twinkle. Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a glimpse of a bright tail of light. She gasped. "What was that?" She asked.

The way Zane's eyes lit up and his shoulders rolled back with his light laugh made Nya smile. "A falling star," he said.

Nya joined him in quiet laughter a moment later as wonder flooded her being. "How did you know it was coming?" She asked.

Zane's eyes, though alight, had a certain ambiguous nature that hinted at regret as he blinked at her. "I could just sense it," he said. "You could say that the Future gave us a small gift."

"Huh," Nya said softly. She yawned again.

The humor in Zane's eyes gave way to concern as he watched her cross her arms over her diminutive chest. "Why are you up?" He asked. "It is foolhardy for you to be awake in your condition."

Nya examined him skeptically. "Why are you up?" She countered. "You've been staying up late and waking up early every night for a month. It can't be healthy for you."

Zane shrugged. "I'm fine," he said. "As long as I don't exert myself too much, I can go for long periods of time with a minimal amount of rest."

"Well, what have you been doing?" Nya asked. "All I ever see you do is wander around. You hardly make eye contact with anyone anymore, and you avoid conversations like some sort of disease."

A long moment of silence. Zane shoved his hands into his pockets and glanced over his shoulder at the sealed double-doors of the monastery gate. "Meditating," he said finally. "I've had a lot on my mind lately, and I feel that I just need time to...clear my head."

Nya shifted her weight awkwardly. "Oh," she said. "Yeah, I understand that feeling."

"You do?" The way Zane perked up reminded Nya of dejected dog after being offered a pat between the ears. "So you've have stuff on your mind too, then?"

Nya dipped her head. "Lots," she answered with a sigh. "But my biggest problems aren't gonna go away with meditation."

"Really?" Zane shot another quick glance at the doors. Why did he keep doing that? "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No," Nya said quickly. She grimaced. Too quickly. "Sorry, Zane. It's nothing personal. I just...need some time to gather my thoughts before I discuss it."

"Isn't gathering your thoughts something achieved through meditation?" Zane asked, drawing an exasperated eye roll from the girl. He smiled, stepped forward, and gestured for her to follow him to the small front door into the monastery. "Go back to bed. You can meditate there while I do my thing out here." He opened the door for her and swept his arm in a grand gesture. "Get at least a couple more hours of sleep. Tomorrow's going to be a big day for you and Jay."

Nya rubbed her eye with the heel of her wrist. "Yeah," she agreed. "I'll do that. Thanks, Zane." She walked through the door and allowed the Nindroid to shut it, setting the thick wood of the door between them. With another yawn- she was tireder than she had originally thought- she padded back down the hall to her bedroom and shut the door behind her.

"Nya?" Jay's drowsy voice filled the air. He turned his body and peered at her through the darkness. "You go to the bathroom again?"

Nya peeled off her robe and climbed back into the bed beside him. "Nausea," she explained. "But I'm better now."

Jay draped an arm over her body and pulled her close. "Good," he said. "I'm glad. We don't want you to get sick on our special day."

Nya snuggled close and inhaled his sweet, relaxing scent of spruce needles and soap. It was a unique combination, but it was comforting.

"Zane is awake," she said after a minute.

"Goodness," Jay mumbled tiredly. "Doesn't the guy ever sleep anymore?"

Nya giggled. "Apparently our sweet Nindroid gets his power from meditation instead of siestas like the rest of the world," she joked. "He showed me a shooting star."

A long pause before Jay's body jerked. He snorted and nestled his head deeper into her hair. "Sorry," he mumbled. "You say something?"

Nya curled into his warmth and closed her eyes. "No," she sighed. "It was nothing. Good night."

Jay was already fast asleep.

* * *

Zane turned his head to the two huge double-doors. With every passing moment, the feeling that a danger was lurking beyond those walls grew stronger. His sixth sense was screaming the six-letter word over and over in his mind. _Danger...danger...danger..._

"Not again," Zane moaned. He rested a hand on his katana as he slinked down the steps and ran across the courtyard. "How did they even find me here?"

While he had not been lying to Nya about his meditation, he had another secret reason for his newly gained habit: guarding his sadly naive family.

He opened one of the silent gates a crack and stepped out into the grassy woods of the Tranquil Forest. His booted feet made no noise as he narrowed his eyes and glared into the darkness.

A glimmer of red showed momentarily through a bush before disappearing. It flashed again, and Zane knew that he'd found his target. _There!_ He drew his weapon and charged toward the flicker.

A shadowy figure leapt from the bush, sword drawn, and lunged at Zane. Its attacking techniques were alarmingly similar to the blond Nindroid's; the way that its thrusts were rapid and precise, the way that its wrist twirled when it brought its sword up for a thrust, and the way that it stood on its toes as it leapt backward to avoid one hit after another.

"Cryptor doesn't give up, does he?" Zane hissed softly; he did not want to wake the rest of the team.

"What was your first clue?" The black Nindroid replied sarcastically. "He sent me here with direct orders to eliminate you. He's growing weary of you killing off our men."

Zane threw his katana forward with a grunt, aiming for the android's chest. "Alone?" He asked. "He should have learned after six failed attempts that sending one assassin in the dead of night isn't going to stop me."

The evil Nindroid ducked the blade easily and sidestepped to the right. "Four of those men had been sent to you with a proposition to join his army," he reminded his adversary. "You killed each of them. He's through with being nice."

Zane's blade lodged itself in a tree. After trying unsuccessfully to dislodge it, he turned to his armed adversary with narrowed eyes. "Ready to be victim number six?" He asked. "I'm tired of saying no. Get lost before I rip out your circuit boards and shove them down your throat."

The Nindroid laughed as he watched his unarmed half-brother flounder, trying desperately to find a plan of attack- or escape, the far more likely of the two options. "Such strong words from such a weak, gentle, _inferior_ piece of scrap metal."

The ice ninja growled. He leapt forward and threw the side of his left hand at the inside of the villain's elbow, collapsing it and making the gloved hand drop its sword. But before the weapon could hit the ground, Zane reached out and grabbed the hilt with his right hand.

"Call me weak," he spat as he lifted the katana and held it to the evil Nindroid's Adam's apple. "Gentle is always a compliment. But you may _never_ call me inferior." He prodded his adversary's blackened skin with the tip of his blade. "Go back to your master. Tell him that if he dares send another opponent to kill my family in such a disgraceful manner again, I will not be this lenient." His blue eyes bored into the shocked red irises on the other side of the sword.

"You..." His evil opponent stuttered uncharacteristically. "How did you do that?"

Zane withdrew and set the sword at ease, point shoved deep into the dirt. "You men are as relentless as the desert sun," he said. It was a quote from Nya's book- the other Nya, from the future that would never happen, of course. "But as consistent as the ocean tide, I will not fail to protect and provide for those who dwell within my waters."

He thrust his left arm toward the monastery. "_This_ is my family. Even though they sleep through this, completely unaware of the fact that I have spent the last month of my life protecting them from you, I will not falter. The ocean does not tremble beneath the hot sun, and neither will I." He returned the evil Nindroid's scowl. "Get out. _Now_."

The Nindroid glowered at its subjugator vehemently for a long, tense second. "I'll be back," he said. "And next time, Cryptor will send me with two men instead of one."

"Put two suns in the sky, and what happens?" Zane asked cooly. "The ocean will create more water vapors that turn to cloud, blocking out the heat and replenishing its depths with refreshing, clean rain."

This seemed to confuse the evil henchman. He blinked once, twice, thrice before taking a reluctant step back.

"A wise man knows when he's been beaten," Zane said. "I suggest that you at least try and pretend to be wise before I change my mind and kill you."

The Nindroid finally turned and ran, not offering any response. After a moment, he morphed his arms into a pair of wings and, using the rocket propulsion system in his boots, took to the sky.

Zane dropped the angry facade with a sigh and watched as the Nindroid flew off into the distance. After he was certain that his half-brother would not return, he went back to he tree and retrieved his sword.

He mulled over what to do with the evil Nindroid's blade. Leave it here? Not an option. He had done a decent job of covering up the evidence of his scuffles so far, why should he start leaving a sloppy trail now?

He looked the weapon over quickly. It had many chips and scratches in it, but that was to be expected from a weapon as low-quality as this.

He finally decided to bury it. There was a patch of soft, silty sediment beside the river about a quarter mile west of where the monastery stood. He could dump it there, and within a few days the mud would smooth out, leaving no evidence of his fight whatsoever.

Except for the hole in the tree, of course. But that could hardly be helped.

"Welcome to the past," Zane said under his breath as he slid his katana back into its sheath and started his short trek to the riverbed. "A land of evil Nindroids, late-night sword fights, and unrequited love."

* * *

**Hehe...I thought that last line was sorta funny. ****Sorry if that sun/ocean metaphor confused people-I did my best. :) **

**Please review/follow/favorite! And thanks for all of the positive feedback on my new songfic, Forever and Always. Honestly, that was the best response I've ever gotten for a one-shot. Nine reviews in twenty-four hours? Wow. Thank you so much! **

**What do you think of this drastic plot twist? I mean...one chapter, we've got a happy little family of four, and...*counts on fingers*... Four chapters later, we have a family of two! Poor Zane...what do you think is going on in his head? I've been staying away from that tricky one...it's best not to poke a sleeping bear, if you get my meaning. **

**Do you think he'll go back to his old house in the Birchwood forest and take the tea in a later chapter? **

**What gender will the baby be? What about its name? How will Zane take having an infant around the house (or Bounty) again? And how will the wedding go? Do you want comedy (everything that can go wrong does) or regular romance (perfect wedding...) Yeah. Not too enthusiastic about that second option. **

**What about Cryptor? What does he have planned for Zane and the rest of the team? **

**Please review with your opinions, plus what you liked (or disliked) about this chapter! Constructive criticism appreciated and encouraged. Have a cookie, awesome followers! ( :: )**


	2. The Dare

**Hey, there! Remember this story? Yeah, the one that's gone an entire month without an update? Sorry about that. I have no excuse.**

**Thank you all so much for your reviews! I mean, eight reviews for the first chapter? That's never happened before! I hope that continues, ****because I really like it a lot. I cannot repeat it enough. Thank you, thank you, thank you!**

**NorthAmericanJaguar: I like your names! I'll keep them in mind for when I start getting into the third trimester ;) **

**And...well, I'm thinking that I might not do the wedding. What do you all want? I dislike anything cliche, and I just...I've been thinking about different ideas for over two months. I'm seriously drawing a blank. So unless you guys can come up with some ideas, I might just skip over it. **

* * *

**The Dare**

* * *

The first thing Nya noted when she woke up was the sound of Jay's soft breathing. When she opened her eyes, she noticed that the sun was not shining. _The sky was clear last night, wasn't it?_ She wondered. _Yes, Zane showed me a shooting star. The sky must have been clear if we could see that._

Nya turned over and examined her fiancé's face. His eyes were shut, his hair tousled and in need of a shower. A brown scruff caressed the skin around his smiling lips, indicating that he had not shaved the night before.

She yawned as she sat upright and gently peeled the sheet away from her shivering body. The air was _ridiculously_ cold.

_Sweater,_ she thought as she opened the closet door. _I need to wear warm clothes._

"Hey, sis?" She heard Kai's voice on the other side of the wall.

Nya turned her head to look at the door. "Come on in," she said softly as she selected a blue hoodie and a red long-sleeved shirt.

Kai opened the door and stepped through. He wore a pair of faded jeans and T-shirt with a candy advertisement on the front. "Good morning," he said. "Sleep well?"

Nya turned to him with an impatient look in her brown eyes. "Can we skip it today?" She asked. "I don't feel like swallowing three spoonfuls of baking soda on my wedding day."

Kai snorted. "That was yesterday's bet," he reminded her. "But don't worry. I've spent the entire morning thinking about it." He raised his hands and spread them apart. "I had an epiphany as I walked down the hall a few minutes ago."

Nya raised a defined black eyebrow. "An epiphany?" She asked. "Do you even know what that word means?"

Kai let his arms drop back to his side. "Eh, no." He grunted. "But it's fun to say. I had to use it at least once."

"Spill it, Kai." Nya rummaged through her drawer to find a matching set of socks- she really needed to get the bin organized- and yawned again. "Give me today's bet, then get your sorry bottom out of our room."

Kai and Nya had been playing a betting game for the past week. Every day they would exchange bets. If they actually did the embarrassing act (swallowing baking soda, poking hornets nests, etcetera), they got one point. Refusing to take the bet resulted in a loss of two points.

So far, Kai was at six points. Nya tailed closely behind with five. The goal was to reach ten.

"Okay," Kai said with a grin. "This one isn't really that hard, and you might actually enjoy it." He jabbed a thumb in Jay's direction. "You need to wake him up."

Nya tossed a pair of matching cotton socks onto the floor behind her and gave Kai a tired look. "I do that practically every day," she said. "Are you running out of ideas?"

Kai shook his head. The strange grin was still stuck to his lips. "No," he said. "I've got it all worked out. First, you're going to get onto that bed and give him a kiss."

Nya felt her face flush. "While he's sleeping?" She asked. "Like...how deep of a kiss?"

If Nya didn't know her brother any better, she would have thought him insane. The smile grew to a low, controlled chuckle. "As deep as you can get," he said. "When he finally wakes up, you're going to tell him something."

_Uh-oh..._ Nya thought. She lifted a hand to her temple and sighed. "What?" She asked. "Seriously. Spit it out, I've got a lot to do today, in case all the hectic preparation yesterday didn't clue you in."

"All right," Kai replied. He leaned closer to her ear and spoke in a low tone; he did not want the poor sleeping man in the bed to wake up before he could be preyed upon. "You're going to tell him that you're pregnant."

Nya took a step backward, shocked. A strangled cry escaped her throat. "How..." She stuttered. "How did you-"

"Relax," Kai set a hand on her shoulder and winked at her. "I know you're not really pregnant. It's a joke." He saw Nya's panicked expression and shook his head. "Aw, come on. Don't tell me you haven't played around yet. You've been sleeping together for an entire month. Being delirious from sleep and the kiss, he should totally believe you when you tell him."

Nya glanced at Jay and hesitated. The problem with his joke is that she _was_ pregnant, and she knew Jay well enough to know that if she actually agreed to do this bet, she knew he would end up spilling the beans with some comment along the lines of, _"I know, Nya. You feelin' okay?"_

"Well?" Kai asked. "You gonna do it, or should I change the scorecard to six-three?"

Nya sighed. "Fine," she said. She threw her blue jeans on the floor in her frustration and walked over to the bed. "Don't you dare video this."

Kai held up his hands. "Do I look like I'm holding a camera?" He asked. "Get going. I'm supposed to be running an errand for Cole."

_Then what are you doing in here?_ Nya wanted to ask, but she kept this retort to herself.

She climbed up onto the bed and sat on her knees next to her fiancé. After flashing Kai a pointed look of annoyance and exasperation, she leaned over and pressed her lips to Jay's.

After receiving no response, she ran a hand through his hair and tried to get her tongue into his mouth. To her mild surprise, his jaw was slack. It allowed her easy access to his teeth and beyond. She grimaced slightly at the bitter taste. Had he forgotten to brush, too?

Jay's sleepy blue eyes fluttered open and blinked at her. He didn't seem too surprised by this sudden move on her part, just slightly confused. "H-hey," he managed to say. It was hard to speak when a pair of lips and a tongue were fighting for dominance in his mouth. "Goo-d...mor..." He gave up after that and leaned into the kiss.

Kai gagged from his spot next to the door. "Yeah, good morning," he said. "Could you two oversized lovebirds speed this up? Nya has some important news to tell you."

Nya found herself growing impatient with her brother's nagging. _You wanted me to do this,_ she thought as she nibbled Jay's lower lip._ You wanted a kiss? I'll give him a kiss that will give you nightmares for weeks to come. That'll teach you._

Actually, she was beginning to enjoy herself. Her heart fluttered like Zane's mechanical butterflies in her chest as she pressed her body close to his and kissed his jaw, then nibbled that tender spot just beneath his ear.

"Oh, no. Please," Kai's exaggerated gagging noises morphed into loud retches. "What did I just do to myself?"

"Nya," Jay whispered. With his lover's lips occupied with kissing other parts of his face, his mouth was free enough to get out the words. "Why is Kai in here? Isn't this just a little bit-"

Her lips pressed back into his mouth, stopping his words. _No you don't,_ she thought. _Just roll with it, no questions. I need Kai to leave so that I can get away with not doing step two of this prank._

Jay finally forced her away and sat upright, gasping for breath. "I love you too," he said. "Please don't suffocate me."

Nya glanced back at Kai, who had a relieved look on his face now that Jay had pulled away. _Great._ She wasn't going to get out of this one...

"Jay," she sat back and wiped her mouth on the back of her hand. The saliva dripping from her chin was distracting. "I have to tell you something important."

Jay didn't seem to mind the wetness around his mouth and other parts of his face. He blinked at her and yawned. "What is it, baby?" He asked.

Nya frowned. He was starting to make a game of calling her that, even though he knew she didn't like it.

She forced herself to calm down. This was no time to bicker about his list of endearing (and teasing) names for her. "I'm..." She cursed in her mind. This was incredibly ridiculous. "I'm pregnant, Jay."

There. She said it. Now, if all went well, Jay would react in a way that would appease Kai's cruel sense of humor and not give them away.

Jay blinked at her in surprise for a long, tense moment before speaking. "With who's kid?" He asked. "Can't be mine."

Now it was Nya's turn to be surprised. _What is he doing?_ She asked herself. "Umm..."

Jay sat leaned forward and pecked her cheek. "Funny joke, you two," he said. "Who's winning the game?"

Nya smiled, relieved. Why had she ever doubted him? He knew better than to give her away. "We're tied now," she told him. "Six and six."

"Aha," Jay nodded. "Well, figure out something especially embarrassing for your brother's next bet; he totally deserves it."

"No," Kai deadpanned. "I think that watching you two make out was punishment enough."

Nya exchanged a glance with Jay before they both shook their heads. "Not really," she said. "Just give me a little while, guys. I'll think of something terrible enough for him later today."

"But you won't have time later," Jay reasoned. "Or did you already forget about our wedding?"

Sarcasm. Was it a gift from heaven or hell?

Nya slid off the bed. "No," she said. "Stop pestering me, Jay." She began shoving Kai toward the doorway. "And you're running an errand for Cole, remember?" She waved a hand at him and shut the door with a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Jay," she ran back over to the dresser and pulled out a shirt for her fiancé.

"No problem," Jay said. He had recovered from his laughing fit and now sat on the side of the bed with his feet on the floor. "I woke up when Kai knocked on the door. I heard the whole thing."

_So that's why his jaw was loose enough for me to kiss him,_ Nya realized. _The sneaky eel. He was awake the whole time._ She tossed the blue shirt in Jay's direction. "We'll have to tell them eventually," she pointed out. "We've waited too long for any of them to believe that the baby was conceived after our marriage."

Jay reached out and caught the shirt. "I know," he admitted. "But we've been so busy trying to find the Nindroid base. It can hardly be helped that our wedding is happening today instead of three weeks ago, like you'd wanted."

Nya reached into another drawer and pulled out a pair of faded jeans. "Just blame the Nindroids," she said as she handed then to Jay and pecked his lips. "I love you, Mr. Walker."

Jay returned the kiss and smiled. "I love you too, Miss Biles."

Nya turned to her pants drawer and pulled out a pair of blue jeans. She sighed as she turned to the full-length mirror. "I don't think these will fit me anymore," she said. "I'm getting so fat."

"Aww, no," Jay stood up and went to her side. "I hardly even notice the difference yet. You're only like...what, eight weeks?" He wrapped an arm around her. "Even if you are a little bigger in the waist, I don't care."

Nya allowed him to turn her away from the mirror. "You're not a woman," she said. "You don't understand how girls feel about having muffin tops when jeans get too tight." In a sudden fit of anger, she threw the jeans on the floor and hugged her stomach. "I'll need to shop for maternity clothes soon."

Jay blew air through his lips. "Stop it," he said. "It's not that big of a deal. You'll survive. Maternity clothes don't come into play until you're like...halfway through the second trimester."

Nya paused, then felt tears well up in her eyes. "Why are you so insensitive?" She asked. "You...I...why..." She picked up her shirt. "I hate this, Jay. I'm not even into the second trimester, and I'm already failing." She seemed oblivious to the fact that she was being 'wordy.'

"Hey," Jay grabbed the shirt from her and tossed it aside. "It's just hormones. Calm down, okay?"

"No!" Nya cried out. "I...why, Jay? I'm so terrible at this!"

Jay sighed softly and kissed the top of her head. "You were so happy a minute ago," he said. "I'm sorry. It's hard for me to learn. I'm going to need a lot of patience if I'm going to be anything but a knife in your gut these next several months."

Nya shoved him away angrily and went for the door. "You're not making me feel any better," she sobbed. "And my neck hurts."

Jay threw up his arms. "That doesn't even follow," he argued. "I'm sorry that your neck hurts. Do you want me to massage your shoulders?"

Nya stopped right before her hand hit the door, and she moaned. "I need a big shirt," she said. "I'm getting so fat, it's obvious that I'm pregnant. Give me that sweatshirt, I'll-"

"Stop," Jay said firmly. He strode up to her, grabbed her hand, and pushed her onto the bed. "Sit still and shut your mouth. You're not fat. You're going to be a great mother. Now lay down and let me rub your shoulders.

Grudgingly, Nya obliged him. She dropped her head onto the pillow face-down. "You should stop lying to me," she said. "Just be honest and tell me the truth. I am-"

"No, you're not." Jay hopped onto the bed and straddled her legs. "Put a smile on your face. I _am_ telling you the truth. Stop acting like you've got bipolar disorder and put a smile on your face."

"Fine," Nya's gruff voice was muffled by the pillow.

Jay began to massage her shoulders gently. "Nope," he said. "Try again. I can hear the frown in your ragged breathing."

"How do you hear a frown?" Nya asked.

"I'm Jay. I just can."

"Does Jay have special powers or something?"

"Yep," Jay replied. His fingers attacked a particularly tight muscle behind Nya's left ear- a terrible place to be sore- as he smiled. "I'm the ninja of cheesy grins. All frowns beware; I know the tickle."

"Uh-huh," Nya sighed. "Move your hand down a little."

Jay did as he was told with an eye roll. "Someone needs a visit from the Optimistic Ninja," he said. "The Dark Frown is polluting your brain. I must hurry. You don't have much time left!"

Nya turned over and glared at him. "Can you just let me be mad?" She snapped. "Take your optimism to another room. I feel sick again; please go away."

Jay threw up his hands in surrender. "Fine," he said. "Sorry. I'll be in the kitchen, eating whatever Misako is cooking for breakfast."

"Go suck an egg," Nya rolled over again, shoving her face deep into the pillow.

The lightning ninja turned on his heel and walked out the door, slamming it shut behind him.

But instead of finding an empty hall, he came face-to-face with Kai.

"What was that about?" Kai asked, bewildered. "I was just walking by and heard some yelling."

Jay felt his heart rate skyrocket. _How much did Kai hear? _He wondered. _If he heard Nya's rant, we're hooped._

"She was just smiling a minute ago," Kai continued, noting Jay's flustered expression. "What'd you do?"

Jay gestured to himself. "Oh, so her attitude is _my_ fault," he stated sarcastically before shoving past Kai.

"Now hold on," Kai grabbed Jay's shoulder. "I was kidding. Don't be all sensitive about it."

Jay shook himself free. "Don't you have somewhere to be?" He asked. "Go find Cole or something." Without giving Kai time to respond, he stormed down the hallway toward the monastery's kitchen.

* * *

"G'morning, Zane," Cole said pleasantly as he entered the kitchen. "Where's Misako? I thought she was cooking."

Zane flipped a pancake expertly with his spatula before letting it fall back into the hot pan. "She had to run a few errands," he replied. "So she passed the buck. I hope you're not disappointed."

Cole waved a dismissive hand. "Naw," he sat down at the island in the center of the spacious kitchen. "Don't tell her I said this, but her cooking is a little bland. Not enough sugar in the batter, not enough salt in the stew."

"Hmm," Zane grunted in agreement as he set the golden pancake on a plate neatly atop about a dozen others and poured more dough into the pan. As he set the bowl back on the counter, he noticed a dime-sized droplet of batter had landed on the stovetop. He grimaced._ There I go again,_ he thought as he reached for a paper towel and wiped it up. _It's unfortunate that my obsessive-compulsive problems didn't go away when I traveled back in time._

Cole drummed his fingers on the table impatiently. "I asked Kai to find me a pair of scissors," he said. "Why hasn't he come back yet?"

Zane shrugged as he threw the paper towel away and picked up the spatula. "Maybe he's playing peeping tom on Nya and Jay," he joked.

Cole raised a brow. "Since when have you been so jocular?" He asked.

_Lloyd spent his entire college life in the future picking on me,_ Zane wanted to say._ It can be difficult to not pick up on it._

"Since I became a human," Zane answered shortly. He rolled up his sleeve and opened his wrist panel. "It's much easier to have a sense of humor when you have an organic brain, you know."

Cole snorted. "Jay was messing with your systems again, wasn't he?" He asked.

"No," Zane said honestly as he shut the panel and let his sleeve relax. "It was Nya." The pancake was getting bubbly, so he flipped it.

Cole shook his head. "You haven't been making a lot of sense lately," he said. "But I doubt that it's insanity, so I'll try not to get too worried."

"That's very considerate of you," Zane replied. "But I'm not fine; I've been diagnosed with at least four different serious mental illnesses, including manic depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder."

_Manic depression, _he repeated in his head._ There's an oxymoron, if ever there was one..._

"Since when?" Cole snorted. "I don't...believe..." He paused, looking to his left. "Do you hear that?"

Zane stilled his hand and turned his head to follow Cole's gaze. The indistinct sounds of people shouting drifted toward his ears. "Sounds like Nya and Jay," he stated after a few seconds.

Cole whistled. "Not even married, and they're already fighting." He smiled. "How long to you think their 'happily ever after' will last?"

"Forever," Zane said. "At least, it'd better." _Considering what I gave up for them to be together,_ he added silently.

A crashing sound echoed through the house moments later, then dead silence, making the sounds of the stove seem abnormally loud.

"Uh-oh," Cole mumbled. "You hear that? Jay's coming this way. Act natural, and maybe he won't strangle us."

Jay came storming into the kitchen not ten seconds after Cole's proclamation, grumbling angrily under his breath.

"Good morning," Zane said pleasantly as he set another pancake on the neat, uniform stack. "Sleep well, Jay?"

"No," Jay sighed as he dropped in a seat next to Cole. "Nya kept on waking up. I'm tired."

"Sorry to hear that," Zane said. "I saw her around three this morning; we went out and watched the stars for a few minutes together."

"Well," Jay sat upright, brows lowered in anger. "Since you two are so chummy, would you mind talking some sense into her?"

Zane paused. "Me?" He asked. "Why would I do that? It seems like I'm needed here."

"Just put the pancakes on hold," Jay said. "You can go and talk to her, then come back. She won't listen to me."

"Elaborate, please." Zane said. "What are you trying to tell her?"

Jay threw his hands in the air. "I don't even know!" He exclaimed. "She was complaining about being fat and her neck hurting. I was trying to make her feel better, and she exploded!"

Cole stood up slowly and backed away. "I'll leave you two alone," he said. "There's stuff that needs to get done, anyway."

Zane nodded his thanks, then turned his attention back to Jay.

"What did I do wrong?" Jay asked, his voice more subdued. "Was it my fault?"

"In part," Zane replied. "There's one important thing that you need to know about women. Sometimes, they just want to be heard. They need someone to sit with them and patiently listen to their problems. The _last_ thing you want to do is try to fix it when they complain like that. Sometimes, women just need to be mad for a little while." He gave Jay a friendly smile. "Leave her alone for twenty minutes. I'm sure she'll cool down a little bit, then you can go apologize."

Jay pressed a hand to his pajama shirt. "Why do I need to apologize?" He asked. "She's the one who got mad at me."

_Why do I suddenly feel like a counselor?_ Zane thought with an inward smile. "You're at a stalemate with Nya," he said out loud. "One of you needs to apologize because if you don't, things won't end well. Since you're the man, you should step up and act like it."

Jay rolled his eyes. "So what you're saying is that just because I'm a guy, I should take all the blame?"

"No!" Zane exclaimed. "Look, sorry. It made more sense in my head, but...you know. Just cut her some slack. Being pregnant isn't easy."

Jay sighed. "Yeah, I guess..." He blinked, then jumped, startled. "Wait...how did you know? Does anyone else know? Oh, that's why Kai asked this morning, isn't-"

"Jay," Zane held up a hand. "Relax, okay? No one else knows, and I don't plan on telling, either."

Jay blew a puff of air through puckered lips. "Why do you have to be so smart?" He asked. "It's impossible to keep a secret."

"Within a week, you won't be able to hide it at all," Zane reminded him. "She's almost nine weeks, right? I'm surprised she's made it this far without being found out. But back on our original track, I think you should consider these four points." He paused to make sure Jay was listening. "Patience, love, forgiveness, and respect. Got it?"

Another quote from Nya's book. Future Kai was a lot wiser than Present Kai, apparently. Duh.

Jay was silent for a moment. He lowered his chin into his hand and hummed a low note. "Yeah," he said eventually. "Thanks, Zane. Where'd you learn this stuff?"

It took Zane less than a second to come up with an answer. "The same place that I learned Nya was expecting," he answered quietly, tapping his forehead.

He started and turned back to the stove. A burning smell permeated the air. "Goodness," he exclaimed. "Look what you did, Jay. Don't distract me while I'm cooking. Get out of here; go talk to Nya, and don't come back until you get a smile from her."

Jay faked a moan and slid down from the chair. "Fine," he whined, although he was smiling. "And by the way, I've never seen a more uniform stack of pancakes in my life." He left the room.

Zane scraped the scorched fry cake from the pan and threw it away. He looked back at his tall stack, puzzled. Was it really that uniform?

There were about twenty pancakes so far. Each one was about the size of a saucer, and the stack went straight up like a pillar from its base; the plate.

He smiled and shook his head. Perhaps it was just a _little_ overdone.

_Oh, well, _he sighed and went back to work. _Some__ habits just can't change._

* * *

**Writing Cranky Nya was fun.**** I bet I could come up with at least four different brain conditions to try and explain her behavior. But the only thing that anyone can say right now is, "She's pregnant." That's really the only way to properly explain her irrational behavior.**

**Does anyone else out there have some good names that you'd like me to use? I need both boy and girl names because...hehe...well, asking for just boy names, or just girl names, would be a dead giveaway. I'm keeping the gender a secret. ****  
**

**I love how Zane cane be completely honest, and they still don't believe him. He sounds like he's joking when in ****reality, he's dead serious. Poor guy...that OCD will haunt him forever.**

**Please review! :D I love you all for reading. Constructive criticism appreciated. **


	3. Congratulations, Idiot

**So...hi. I know, I'm sorry. I've been so bad with consistency lately. Only about 1,400 words so far in TG. If I don't get a full TG chapter done by Monday, I sincerely apologize. Busy, busy, busy! Thankfully, I should have more free time after next Thursday. **

**And...yes. In this chapter, I am using an informal disparaging term in this chapter. Gomensa. **

**I have a confession to make. I actually DID have a wedding planned a couple weeks ago, I just forgot about it when I was writing my last author's note. Yeah. That just shows how much of my brain is still hanging around when I'm living off of six hours of sleep.**

**It is seriously like waaaay after midnight, and I still have chores to do. Fun. But I've been able to help out my local candidate a lot this past month.**

**Whatver you do, voters, PLEASE choose the candidate that's pro-life and is against amnesty, and protects our gun right. Those are three very important subjects that will decide the future of the USA. In this past month, we found out that there is some government program where Obama is shipping DISEASED illegal immigrants up to Alaska. I know someone up there who had a friend die of "mysterious causes" like two weeks ago because of the sick children that have been set loose on the streets in Anchorage and other heavily populated areas. Amnesty is bad, people. And dangerous. Those children need to be with their families, not up in Alaska! **

**Sigh...please don't take it personally if your opinion clashes with mine. It is good to have different opinions. It means that the Government hasn't brainwashed everyone yet. ;) ****I am sixteen. I cannot vote, but I still make a difference every day by helping my voting parents. You're never too young to make a difference. My four-year-old sister even helps stamp envelopes and wave signs! **

**There I go again. I just can't stay away from those touchy subjects, can I? Sorry. I'm done now. **

**Well, this is sort of a wedding. But I cut it off early, and...oh, you know what? I'm rambling. Forget it. Just...skip all of this and read. And review, please. And give me constructive criticism. I did most of this over the span of nearly ten SOLID HOURS of writing. An' ah am tahrd, pleez forgive (and point owt) miss-takes. 'Tis aftah mid-nacht ;) **

* * *

**Congratulations, Idiot**

* * *

Jay walked back toward the bedroom in silence. Although he was skeptical of Zane's ideas and advice, it seemed like it was worth a shot. And if it worked...well, he would have to ask Zane if there were any more words of wisdom he could have.

But honestly, he was a little dubious.

Taking a deep breath, Jay grabbed the door handle and turned it. "Hey, Nya?" He walked in slowly. "Can we talk?"

Nya was sitting on the edge of the bed with a tissue in her hand, staring at her feet sullenly. "What do you want?" She asked. Her voice was low and cracked.

_Is she crying? _Jay wondered. He walked over to the bed and sat down next to her. "Well, there's a couple of things I want," he began. "I want to apologize, for one thing. I shouldn't be so short-tempered with you."

Nya seemed surprised by this apology. She lifted her head, revealing red-rimmed eyes and a quivering lip. "Why are you apologizing?" She asked. "You were just trying to make me feel better."

Jay pondered this for a moment. "Because I love you," he answered finally. "And I forgive you. I don't want anything to get between us, so I'm sucking up my pride and making things all better." He shrugged his shoulders. "That, and Zane told me I couldn't eat until I came back and got you to smile."

Nya shook her head. "So that's what it is," she said. "You're doing this for food, not our relationship."

"No," Jay insisted. "I'm doing it for us; Zane's threat just gave me a little extra incentive."

Nya grunted. "Well, I'm still angry," she said. She lifted the tissue to her nose and blew loudly. "But...get dressed. I might give you a fake smile after we're done, and then we can both go eat."

"Fair enough," Jay said as he got to his feet.

"And shave, too," Nya said. "I'm not kissing you until those sharp needles on your face are gone."

"Yes mistress," Jay said with a grin. "Anything to please you."

* * *

Jay's heart pounded heavily in his chest as he stared into the mirror. "Oh, gosh," he breathed to his reflection. "I...this is scary."

"Oh, relax," Kai said. "You'll survive. You look great. You smell...okay."

Jay sighed. "I'm sweating, aren't I?"

Kai scratched the back of his head. "Just...put on more deodorant."

"Not the scented kind," Zane cut in from his position in the corner of the bedroom. "Trust me. Not a good idea."

Jay picked up a stick of deodorant and started unbuttoning his shirt. "Thanks."

Zane grunted in response. He could feel the beginnings of a strong depressive fit coming on, so he tried to stay as quiet as possible.

The door opened and Cole poked his head through. "Everything's pretty much done, you guys," he said. "Except..." He faltered.

Kai turned to look at Cole's tired face. "What's wrong?" He asked.

"Umm," Cole cleared his throat. "The lady who was supposed to do the cake cancelled."

"Cancelled?" Kai repeated, eyes wide. "Can she even do that?"

"I don't know," Cole said anxiously. "She said something about her cat knocking over a clock and flattening the second tier. So she had to let us go. We'll get a refund, of course, but no cake."

Jay dragged a hand across his face. "Nya's going to be so mad," he moaned.

"Mad?" Kai raised a brow. "It's just a cake."

"No," Jay shook his head. "She's had the most horrific food cravings for over a month now. All she's talked about the last four hours is that cake."

Kai pursed his lips. "That's going to be a problem, then," he said. "Can Misako bake one?"

"She's busy getting Nya ready," Cole said. "I could ask Jay's mom, but-"

"Nope," Jay interjected. "Anyone but my mom. She has no idea how to bake."

Kai scoffed. "It can't be any worse than Cole's cooking."

Jay shot Kai an expressive glare. "How much are you willing to bet?" He asked. "Hey, Zane. Could you do it?"

Zane shrugged. "If I'm not needed here, sure."

"Sure?" Kai repeated. "Your speech has been a little casual lately. You feeling okay?"

_Do I look okay?_ Zane thought. _I feel like a category six hurricane of angst and anger are ravaging my systems._ He nodded. "I'm fine," he said as he walked toward the door. "Don't worry. Give me forty-five minutes, and I'll have a cake."

Cole backed up so that Zane could pass through the door. "But the wedding is starting in thirty," he whispered.

Zane forced out a breathy laugh and waved his hand. Nausea was churning his stomach. "Fine then," he said. "I'll have a cake in thirty minutes. Excuse me." He bolted away without giving them a chance to respond.

_Why now?_ He turned and ran into the bathroom, then locked the door behind him. Gasping for breath, he locked the door and dropped to his knees on the floor.

He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream. He wanted to bolt from the room and rip the face off of the first person he saw. _Manic depression,_ he thought. _Why now? I can't be dealing with this when I'm needed out there._

He tried to control his breathing. In through the nostrils, out through the mouth. The technique was supposed to help lower his heart rate, but he found it to be a much more useful tool to use when he needs to distract his mind. _In, out,_ he clenched his fists and punched them into the floor. _In, out._

A single tear streaked his left cheek. _Not now..._ He blinked slowly, eyes fixed on the floor. _I can't cry now. I need to stay strong._

_...In... Out..._ He breathed deeply and got to his feet. He was better than this. He had authority over his depression. The overwhelming stress and despondency would _not_ control him. Not today.

He turned the faucet on and plunged his hands into the hot water. _One..._ He counted the seconds in his mind. _Two...three...four...five..._ He counted up to a hundred before he allowed himself to shut the water off.

He looked into the mirror and forced a weak smile. _This is it, _he thought as he dried his hands. _Nya's special day. I can't be a grump. I can't clue them in to the fact that I'm not happy. Not happy with them, not happy with my life, not happy with being forced to fight the Nindroids again, not-_

He cut himself off. There it was again. His negative side was exceptionally touchy today.

_It might have something to do with the fact that my wife is marrying another man and is completely oblivious to the fact she is tearing my heart apart as she does so, but who knows for certain?_

_Note the sarcasm._

Zane unlocked the door as he checked his watch. It was five after one o'clock. He had twenty-five minutes to make the cake. He could frost it during the ceremony._ I doubt I could make it through the vows without slitting my wrists, anyways,_ he told himself as he walked down the hall and entered the kitchen. _Not that hurting myself would do any good. I'm not a human anymore. No blood to bleed out._

Cole was standing in the dining room with a clipboard, tapping his lips with a pen as he read the scrawls on the sheet before him. He looked up at Zane and smiled. "Bathroom emergency?" He asked in a joking tone.

If Zane hadn't been so focused on keeping those tears from forming in his eyes, he might have been tempted to fake a smile. "You could say that," he said tactlessly.

Cole pretended to be offended. "You don't need to bite my head off," he said. "I was just asking."

Zane turned to a cupboard and pulled out a mixing bowl. Normally, he would bake his cakes from scratch. But since he was so short on time, he felt obligated to use one of Misako's box mixes. "What still needs to be done?" He asked.

Cole ran a finger over his list. "Besides the cake?" He sighed. "A ton of stuff. That floral lady still isn't here with Nya's bouquet, Garmadon is still in town talking with the caterer, and Lloyd just twisted his ankle while trying to stand on a ladder and attach the roses to the banner."

Zane whistled. "You're acting exceptionally calm about it," he said. "Why didn't you mention any of this to Jay?"

Cole laughed dryly. "Just the cake was almost too much for the poor guy," he said. "Why clutter up his mind with more stuff he won't be able to control? With your help, I can handle it."

Zane pulled two boxes of cake mix out from the cupboard and set them on the counter beside his bowl. "Count me in," he said. "Lloyd has ice on his foot, right?"

"Yep. He's on the couch trying to put together Jay's boutonniere."

Zane snorted. "This'll be interesting," he said.

Cole poked the Nindroid's arm with his pen. "Be nice," he said. "The kid's doing all that he can."

* * *

Nya sat in a chair in front of the mirror, body wrapped in a warm white robe. She stared at her reflection intensely as Misako played with her hair. The way that the elder lady's fingers ran across her scalp was soothing. Soft classical music was playing from Misako's player, which sat on the bed behind them.

"I am so nervous," Nya said. "Honestly, my jitters are strong enough to make the house shake."

"I believe it," Misako said as she reached for the curling iron. "How do you want your hair done?"

Nya stared at her frizzy bob cut and shrugged. "Like I normally do it, I guess," she said. "Just get all those rogue strands under control, and then I'll try to wiggle into that dress."

Misako plugged in the device and set it aside to that it could heat up. "Oh, hush," she chided. "You're not overweight."

Nya sighed and rolled her eyes. She was dreading the moment when she would have to try and suck in her gut while Misako zipped up the back of the dress. Her belly was _firm._ All the amniotic fluids and extra tissue around her baby were starting to feel like a concrete wall was holding it together. She couldn't move her stomach, even if she tried.

"I have a strong sense that something is bothering you," Misako filled the silence as she ran a hairbrush through Nya's hair. "I can guess that your tense silence goes beyond mere wedding _jitters_, as you call them."

Nya felt her heart rate skyrocket. _Does she suspect anything?_ She wondered as she forced a smile. "Oh...you've noticed?" She squeezed out.

"Honey," Misako shook her head. "Even Lloyd was asking questions this morning. What happened with you and Jay?"

Nya took a deep breath through her nose and calmed down. "It was nothing," she said. "Jay and I just had a little fight. I apologized during breakfast."

"Good." Misako picked up the iron and a lock of Nya's hair. "That's the first thing you'll learn in marriage. It's better to take the blame and apologize than it is to feed your pride and point fingers."

Nya shrugged. "I guess," she said.

"How do you feel?" Misako asked. "I mean physically, not mentally. Are you tired? I've noticed that you've been getting up at least twice every night to go to the bathroom since you've been here."

Nya tapped her fingers nervously on the armrest of her seat. "It's nothing," she said. "Just...nausea."

Misako seemed to accept this, as she went quiet and focused everything on getting Nya's hair done.

The music was grating on Nya's nerves. There were no words, and no real percussion in most of them. And the violins were giving her a headache. She wanted some soft rock. Guitars and baritone male voices were relaxing to her. This orchestra...it made her want to scream.

"Ready for the dress?" Misako spoke again after the song- Nya had dubbed it The Headache Hymn With no Words- had ended.

Nya shook herself out of her thoughts and nodded. She stood up and turned to face the bed, where the white dress was laid neatly. She shrugged out of her robe and stepped into the sleeveless, constricting garment. Misako grabbed onto the zipper and began to close the long gap along her spine.

Nya held her breath as she felt the zipper travel upward. _Don't be too tight, don't be too tight,_ she repeated the prayer in her mind again and again.

Misako's hand stopped after three inches. "Suck in your gut for a moment," she said sweetly.

Still refusing to breath, Nya tried to make her muscles move. "Is...that enough?" She asked, although she knew her stomach had barely given a half inch of leeway.

Misako fumbled with the zipper pull and the white fabric for a moment before she finally got it moving again. "Yes," she said. "That'll do."

Nya exhaled, relieved.

"Goodness," Misako stopped again. "Stop moving. You relaxed."

"Sorry." Nya inhaled again and tried to suck in her pregnant stomach again.

"It's fine," Misako assured her. "I washed the dress as soon as we got home. It must have shrunk." She wrapped her arm around Nya's torso and fiddled with the front of her dress.

Nya's face visibly relaxed. _So Misako isn't suspicious,_ she thought._ That's good._

"Hold on," Misako inhaled a breath and gasped. "Nya, turn around."

Nya turned to look at Misako. "Is something wrong?" She asked.

The elderly woman bent down and touched Nya's abdomen again. "It's firm," she said with a smile. "Congratulations, Nya. How far along are you?"

Nya blinked._ So this is it,_ she thought. _This is how the secret goes down._ "Eight weeks," she said. "I guess it's impossible to keep a secret from you, huh?"

Misako's green eyes were alight. "You're almost into the third trimester," she said. "How does everyone else not know yet?"

"I don't know." Nya looked into the mirror. Her dress still wasn't zipped up completely. "My brother's going to kill Jay," she sighed.

"Why is that?" Misako asked. "Because Jay gave you a child? I don't think so. He'll probably be just as excited as everyone else." She winked. "But if you have a girl instead of a boy, yes, Kai might do _something_ terrible to Jay. He won't kill him, though." She turned Nya around and grabbed the zipper. "That aside, this dress is a menace. Promise me that you'll take it off right after the ceremony."

Nya pressed her hands against her stomach and tried to push it in a little. Misako's reaction left her both relieved and stressed on a few different levels. If she had known that people would be this accepting of her latest development (no pun intended), she would have confessed sooner.

"I promise," she said. "I like this dress even less than you do. We can light it on fire and toast marshmallows in its warm flames tonight for all I care."

* * *

Zane mixed the buttercream frosting with a vengeance. The timer on the cake had only a few seconds left on it.

"Five minutes, Zane," Cole reminded him. "Nya's almost done with her makeup."

The timer went off. Zane dropped the spoon and pressed the button on the oven. "The cake needs to cool off before I can frost it," he said.

"What about the frosting flowers?" Cole asked. "Will you decorate the cake, too?"

Zane shook his head. "She doesn't like frosting," he explained. "So I'm layering it thin."

"Gotcha." Cole checked his clipboard again and frowned. "Garmadon still hasn't returned, and Nya's bouquet hasn't arrived yet."

"The one that she's going to walk down the aisle with?" Zane clarified.

"Yep. That's the one."

"Hmm." Zane slipped on a pair of oven mitts and pulled the sheet cake from the oven. "What will you do if the florist still is not here in five minutes?"

"Wait for her, of course," Cole said. "It's not a wedding without the flowers."

Zane nodded in agreement, then paused. "Was that sarcasm?"

Cole seemed started by Zane's question. "Yes," he replied. "Good job, Zane. That was sarcasm."

Zane set the cake on the counter and dropped the oven mitts back into their respective drawer. "Well that is problematic. But Lloyd's finished Jay's boutonniere, right?"

Cole grimaced. "Eh, sort of." He added in a whisper, "I think I counted four teacup roses. And there was only one sprig of baby's breath."

Zane nearly tripped over his feet. "Four teacup roses?" He asked, incredulous. "Has he never heard of the Fibonacci sequence?"

Cole nodded in understanding. "I know," he said. "But I didn't have the heart to tell him. I was just about to ask Kai because he's the best at...you know."

"He has the most tact when it comes to scolding?" Zane supplied.

"Thank you. Yes." Cole scribbled something on his sheet, then turned toward the door and pointed down the hall with his pencil. "I almost forgot to tell you. Misako wants to speak with you in her bedroom for a minute."

Zane gestured to himself. "Me?" He asked. "Isn't Nya getting dressed?"

Cole shook his head. "Clothing? Naw, she's getting married in the nude. I thought you knew about this already. As a matter of fact, everyone's streaking for the ceremony. Jay wanted to be as close to nature as possible."

Zane's face began to redden. "I was not informed of this plan change," he said. "Jay was just speaking to me yesterday about what color of tie I should-"

Cole burst into a loud fit of laughter. "I'm kidding!" He said loudly. "You're awesome, Zane. One minute, you're understanding sarcasm like a boss and the next, you're panicking about a little party where everyone wears their birthday suits."

Slowly, the flush drained from Zane's cheeks. "Oh." He cleared his throat. "Okay... I'll...go see what Misako wants."

Still locked in uncontrollable fits of laughter, Cole straightened and nodded, unable to speak more than a few broken syllables between his chortles.

Zane turned and walked away. He ran a hand through his hair and puffed air through his lips. _Just put one foot in front of the other, _he told himself. _He's just joking. Nya isn't gonna be..._

Despite his best efforts, the skin on his neck began to feel unbearably hot. He had seen so much of Nya in his alternate timeline that what she looked like under the clothing was no longer matter of imagination; it was a matter of memory.

And he had been cursed with an _exceptionally_ remarkable memory.

He knocked on Misako's door and cleared his throat. "Hello?" He called out. His voice was cracked.

Misako opened the door immediately. "Zane?" She seemed surprised. "Did Cole send you?"

"Yes. How can I help you?"

Misako hesitated. "I had hoped that he would send Kai," she said.

"I believe that he is busy helping Lloyd at this moment. Shall I fetch him?"

"No," Misako threw the door open wide. "No, you'll do just fine."

Zane stepped through the open door and examined the room. His breath caught in his throat when he saw the woman before him.

Nya stood with her back turned to him, face inches from the mirror as she applied a deep red lipstick. She looked up and saw him in the reflection of the mirror. She smiled. "What's wrong with you?" She asked. "Did you swallow a ghost pepper or something?"

Zane tried to keep his focus on the reversed image of her smile in the mirror, but his brain seemed to have other plans. His eyes drifted down and stared at her bare shoulders. The dress hugged her body like milky shrink wrap below her armpits, and the hem barely reached her knees. _Good luck, Jay,_ he thought. _If you let her wear dressed like that all the time, I doubt men will ever leave her alone. Keep your nunchucks in a holster at your hip for the rest of your life._

"N-no," he said finally. "Sorry. You just..." He cleared his throat again. Never mind what his face _looked_ like, it _felt_ beet red. "What did you need me for?"

Nya puckered her lips in the mirror and set aside her makeup. "I guess Misako wants your opinion," she said. She turned to face him, hands folded awkwardly on her belly. "Too much makeup?"

The _last_ place Zane could possibly direct his eyes was at her face. Cleavage. So much cleavage. The sweetheart neckline- why was it even called that? There was at least five inches of skin between the dress and her neck- curved beautifully around her breasts before disappearing behind her back.

If Zane could bleed, his nose would be dripping like a crimson waterfall.

Nya sighed softly. "That bad, huh?" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked down at the floor. "More mascara, maybe? Or a darker shade of pink for my blusher. Misako said so, but-"

"N-no," Zane stuttered again. He breathed in deeply, then exhaled. "Look at me again, please."

Nya did so. Her eyeliner had been applied with a light hand. The mascara was a little clumpy, but not overly so. It could be overlooked. Her pale skin stood in sharp contrast with her lips, which were a deep red color. She smiled nervously. "Say something," she said. "You're just making me feel more awkward when you frown like that."

Was he frowning? Zane realized that, in his attempt to look nonchalant as he examined the bride-to-be, he was scowling. Whoops. He lifted his lips, praying desperately that they weren't quivering as he did so. "I..." He tugged at his collar. Was steam rising from his skin? "Well, this is just my opinion, but...I think that you look best without any makeup."

Nya seemed confused. "Really?" She turned and looked back at the mirror. "Jay makes the most comments on how pretty I am when I'm wearing lots of it."

Zane shrugged. "Well, it looks okay, I guess," he said. He began walk backward, trying to make it to the door. "It's not too thick and noticeable." He bumped into Misako and let out a short yelp as his elbow hit her collarbone. "Sorry. I-I've got work to do. Please hurry. As soon as Garmadon and the florist arrive, we'll be starting the ceremony."

Nya turned and faced Zane again with a gasp. "The florist still isn't here?" She asked. "Please tell me that the cake is here, at least."

Zane found himself caught between a rock and a hard place. "No. She...cancelled."

Faster than Zane would have thought possible, all the color drained from Nya's face, making her open, shocked red lips look even more pronounced. "No cake?" She blinked, swooned, and grabbed the table for support. "No bouquet?" She swallowed. "Where is Jay? I-I need to talk to him."

Zane reached out to offer her his arm, then decided against it. The last thing he needed to do was touch her skin. Sure, he wanted to, but-

He shook himself._ Snap out of it,_ he warned his twitchy fingers. _She's not yours anymore. And she never will be._

_Never._

Nya bolted past the Nindroid and elderly woman, her white high-heels clicking on the wood. "Jay!" She shouted. "Jay, where are you?"

Zane's feet shuffled indecisively for a moment. "I'm making a cake!" He called down the hall, trying futilely to reach her ears. "I covered at least that part!"

He ran after her. N_ot smart, Zane,_ he scolded himself._ Not smart at all._

* * *

Jay picked up his boutonniere and twirled it in his fingers for a moment before attaching it to his lapel. "Looks great, Lloyd," he said. "How's your ankle?"

Lloyd beamed at the compliment. "It's not too bad," he said. "I'll still be able to do the rings."

"Good." Jay looked up at Cole and nodded. "How's the cake going?"

Cole hesitated. "It's going," he said. "It just came out of the oven. Zane's helping Nya with her makeup and-"

Jay cut him off. "Zane?" He smiled, then exchanged a look with Kai, who began to laugh quietly. "Helping her with makeup?" Lloyd joined in on the laughter.

Cole rolled his eyes. "No. Misako is doing the actual work. They just wanted him there to give his input."

Of course, they were all laughing for one reason, and one reason only: what did Zane know about women and makeup? Just thinking about him complimenting Nya on her looks would make Jay double over once again.

"Jay!" Nya's desperate voice filled the air. "Jay!"

The laughter stopped instantaneously. "She's coming this way," Cole said quietly. "This isn't good. Jay's not supposed to see the dress until the ceremony begins."

But Jay did not seem to care about Cole's statement. "Nya?" He called out. "I'm in the living room. What's wrong?"

Nya came into view a moment later, face flushed and eyes wide. She saw Jay and immediately shot into his arms. "Jay," she buried her head into his chest and clutched him tightly. "M-my...I'm panicking. Help me."

Jay held her tightly. "It's okay," he said. "Take a deep breath and tell me what happened."

Nya breathed deeply, then began to speak. "It's awful, Jay. My bouquet isn't here, the cake lady cancelled, Garmadon still hasn't finished scheduling with the caterer- please tell me how that's gonna work out, because it takes them a couple hours to cook the food- not to mention, I can't breathe because this dress is so constricting, and Zane thinks that my makeup looks terrible!" Breathing heavily, she dropped her run-on sentence and clutched Jay's shoulder, feeling woozy again.

"That's not what I said!" Zane defended himself as he skidded to a halt next to Kai. "I said that she looked better without it. Nothing more."

Jay patted Nya's shoulder. "Good job," he said. "That was by far the longest exhale I've ever heard from you. How many sentences could you have broken that into? I'm so proud."

Nya began to cry. "Don't you care?" She asked as she pushed him away and reached for Kai's arm. "I'm trying to tell you that the day we've dreamed about for years is falling apart, and all you can say is that you're proud of my bad grammar?"

Jay struggled to find his tongue. "Your makeup is fine," he said. "Zane is working on the cake. Cole just got a call from Garmadon. He's ordering a bunch of takeout from that really nice restaurant down the road from the caterer, and _it's just a bouquet._"

Nya's eyes narrowed. "It is not _just a bouquet,_" she hissed as Kai wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "I am exhausted, okay? I have been helping Cole plan this day for weeks. The least you could do is show a little decency and delicacy."

Jay pulled at his hair. "Look," he said. "I'm sorry. This day hasn't gone exactly as I imagined it, either. Calm down, okay? Your pregnant brain is kicking in. It's just hormones. We'll survive...maybe."

Nya placed her left hand over her stomach- flat, because of the constricting dress- and pointed at Jay angrily. "Don't you _dare_ blame this on your child," she said.

A collective gasp sucked the oxygen from the room.

Jay cleared his throat. "Nya..."

"Don't _Nya_ me! You're in control of your own tongue!"

"Nya..." Jay's heart thumped heavily in his chest. He did not dare look Kai in the eyes.

"Stop it!" Mascara was running down her cheeks with her tears. "Just because I'm pregnant, doesn't mean that you can just blame all of our problems on it! I am carrying our _child_, and you will treat it with-" she cut herself short. Everyone was staring at her in stunned silence.

Jay took a step backward and slumped onto the couch next to Lloyd. "I'm dead," he groaned. "Thank you, Nya, for sealing my terrible fate."

Cole was the first to react. He dropped his pencil and clipboard to the floor with a loud clatter. "I knew it!" He laughed as he pointed between Nya and Jay. "Oh, I so called it! Lloyd, did I not say three days ago that I thought she was pregnant?"

Lloyd nodded slowly. "Yeah," he said. "Yeah, I guess you did."

Bewildered, Jay looked up at Kai, who seemed less than surprised. If anything, the fire ninja's smile said that he had expected as much.

"Congratulations, Jay," Cole said with a firm handshake. "When are you going to tell your parents?"

Jay couldn't pull his eyes away from Kai's. "Ah, tonight?" He said indecisively. "They're out in the courtyard waiting, right? I'll tell them after the ceremony, I guess."

Kai let go of Nya and crossed his arms over his chest.

Jay wanted to melt into the leather cushions and disappear. "I can explain, Kai." No, he couldn't. Not really. But he was running out of words to say.

Kai looked down at Jay with straight lips and a set jaw. "Jay," he said calmly- _too calmly,_ Jay thought- as he blinked slowly. "You're an idiot."

There it was. The truth, plain and simple.

"I'm...sorry." Jay said. What was it about Kai's eyes that made it so hard to look away? He was a captive to that hazel gaze.

Kai shook his head. "Did you actually think that I didn't already know about your kid?" He asked. A smile started to lift his lips. "Dude, the reason I think you're an idiot is because you thought that I didn't notice when you snuck out of the bunk room in the Bounty eight weeks ago and didn't come back at all that night. You're an idiot because you didn't think I'd notice how you proposed to her so soon _after_ that night. And you're an idiot because you thought you could make it through the third month without everyone figuring it out."

He grabbed Jay's hand and pulled him to his feet. "Also, you're an idiot for messing with my sister in the first place." He slapped Jay's shoulder and shoved him toward Nya. "Now help her get cleaned up, then marry her so that she can get out of that ridiculously tight dress."

Jay reached for Nya's hand, mind still trying to process what had happened. "Okay," he said. "Thanks?"

"Don't mention it." Kai waved him away with a flick of his wrist. "Congratulations, idiot. Now get out of my sight."

Jay pulled Nya down the hall without a word. "Did what I think just happened...happen?" He whispered.

Nya looked up at him, face smudged with her wet makeup, and nodded. "I think so," she whispered back. "They knew about the baby already. All of them." She started to laugh softly as they entered Misako's room. "I think Kai's wrong, though. About you being an idiot."

"Why's that?"

Nya gave him an airy smile. "Because we both qualify for that title," she said. "There's no _you_ or _I_ about it anymore. We're a couple, and we share every insult."

Jay purposely ignored the questioning look from Misako as he leaned in and kissed Nya full on the mouth. "Couldn't have worded that any better myself," he said when they pulled away. "You are such a pretty, eloquent bride."

Nya smiled dreamily as she grabbed a fistful of his shirt. She looked at his lapel and gasped. "Jay," she said. "What is this?"

Jay followed her eyes. "Oh," he grunted. "I'm no genius, but I think that the thing on my jacket is a boutonniere with four little flowers in it."

Nya groaned and threw her head back. "Has Lloyd never heard of the Fibonacci sequence?" She asked, her anger returning. "Three flowers, maybe five, but four? Really?"

"How about six?" Jay asked with a grin. "Could he have put in six flowers?"

Nya turned away with clenched fists and took a deep breath. "Jay," she said. "I take it back. Kai's insult applies to you, and only you."

* * *

**Haha. Did any of you see that reaction from Kai coming? I sort of did, ****because I've been planning it for weeks (except for that time a few days back when I forgot) and...wow. I am totally rambling. **

**Did any of you get my Fibonacci references? You'd better have, because otherwise, my ending must have sounded terrible. **

**I have a question for all of you: how did you originally think that everyone would find out that Nya was pregnant? I'm too weird for a cliche'd talk around the diner table, LOL. Trying to keep it original...sorry. **

**Also. What do you guys want to see in this story? I have some hurt/comfort planned, as well as some drama. I noticed that a lot of you want Zane to find love again. Are you serious? Because I could totally do that. You want an OC, or do you want some PIXAL? Or maybe he could get Nya back? Also, I'd like some more names to go into the Idea Pool. Girl and boy. I want a bunch of both. **

**Special thanks to Daughtry and Capital Lights for helping this chapter come together. I listened to Daughtry as I wrote this chapter, then switched gears and turned to the more upbeat Capital Lights when I began editing. **

**And I realize that Zane has some SERIOUS problems. If he lived in our world, he would be in a psych ward right now. I'm going to slowly try to fix him up (you know, like that song from Coldplay?) LOL. I am a diehard music fanatic. They say we're crazy. They say we're crazy. (Imagine Dragons!) **

**I'm done. Please review, give me LOTS of constructive criticism. Misspelled word? Italics bracket? uncapitalized sentence? (HA! Reread that sentence, then know that you failed.) Hehe. It's almost one in the morning. I am not thinking straight. Sausage. Goodnight. **


	4. Monster Habit

**I've had these major epiphanies the past two days for both this story and TG. It feel AMAZING to have my writing spirit back! I wrote over 3,000 words into TG yesterday, and then did this today. I am so excited for you guys to read TG Chapter 32! :D It's still not done. I've got about 500 words left to write (and you know me. I say there are gonna be fifteen chapters in NJ, it turns into 18. I say I've got 8,000 words planned for chapter 15, it turns into 11,000.) Sooo yeah. Expect a big chapter 32 next Monday. **

**This chapter...sigh. It's gonna be another one of those ones like when you found out that Nya had an abortion. Either you tolerate it or you absolutely hate it. Sorry, Zane. ****And readers. Enjoy anyway!**

* * *

**Monster Habit**

* * *

Zane stared at the floor as he listened to Nya and Jay list off baby names.

He was tired. Ornery. Impatient. Why? He had no clue. He just was, and there didn't seem to be any way to change it.

"Bryan?" Nya pointed to a name in her book. She gasped. "Oh, I like Bryson, Jay. What do you think?"

Jay shrugged. "Brianna?" He suggested. "Beatrice? If we did that, her nickname could be Bea."

Nya sighed and threw her head back, hitting his collarbone. "It's going to be a boy," she said. "Tell him, Zane. You think it's gonna be a boy."

Zane looked up from the floor. He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees. "I have no opinion," he said quietly. His eyes looked sunken and dim. "They're both wonderful, so I cannot choose."

Nya looked over at Cole and gave him a pleading look. "It's a boy. You know it is."

Cole looked at her rounded belly. She was five months pregnant, and the baby was really starting to make itself known. Her- or his- development had begun to take off after the end of her ninth week, as if to make up for its lethargy before then. Cole wasn't going to lie. Nya was huge. Big enough to make the idea of twins seem very realistic.

Cole dropped his magazine and held up his hands, palms raised. "It'll be a boy," he said. "I'm sorry, Jay. It's the only way to explain her size."

"Size has nothing to do with it," Kai said as he walked into the room. "But I agree with Cole. It's going to be a boy."

Jay threw his head back on the cushion and groaned, mimicking Nya's move moments earlier. "I'm all alone," he lamented. "Even my own wife contradicts me."

Nya patted his thigh condescendingly. "You poor thing," she pretended to pout. "I know this is hard for you to understand, but you can't always be right."

"But there's a hundred Nindroids out there," Jay said, "and only six of us. Does that make us wrong, then?"

"This is different," Kai argued. "Right, Zane?"

Zane frowned deeply and folded his hands. "Why are you guys always dragging me into your arguments?" He asked. "Again, I have no opinion. Excuse me." He stood and pushed past Kai with a few long, deliberate strides before disappearing down the hallway.

Kai looked at Jay and raised an eyebrow. "What's up with him?" He asked. "He's been acting weird lately."

"Yeah. We've noticed." Jay said in a flat tone. "Who hasn't?"

Kai leaned against the doorframe and folded his arms. "Come to think of it," he said thoughtfully. "He's been like this since the day you proposed to Nya."

"What?" Nya flipped to the next page. "No, it was after that, I'm sure. The first time that I noticed something was up was when we fought those Nindroids about three months ago, and Cryptor showed up. Remember that?"

Cold snapped his fingers. "Oh, yeah. Zane got all angry and attacked him, even though-"

Nya cut him off. "Brandon?" She pointed at another name. "You like that one, Jay?"

Cole rolled his eyes and sat back in his seat.

Kai uncrossed his arms and went to Cole. "Don't worry," he said. "I have a theory on what's wrong with Zane. I'll confront him later, then talk to you about it. Okay?"

Cole blinked. "You really think you know what's wrong?" He whispered back. "Go for it. We're all anxious." He looked back at Nya's bright smile and corrected himself. "Well, _most_ of us are anxious."

* * *

Zane sat cross-legged on the roof of the Bounty, his journal turned to a blank page as he reached into his pocket for the new bane of his existence: the cigarette.

After lighting the shaft and taking a deep breath, he felt calm enough to pick up his pen and begin writing in his careful, elegant script.

_Sunday, December 13_

_A lot has changed this week. For me, at least. For instance: I picked up smoking three days ago. I know, it was probably a terrible decision. But I am an android, so I figured that this habit would not pose any threat to my health._

_But if it does eventually kill me, so be it._

_I think that I should be saying something more along the lines of how much I love my family, and that I live to protect them, but it's hard to say something like that when you can't even look your teammates in the eyes. Yep. I keep my head down, avoid people who ask questions, and give vague answers whenever eluding them fails._

Zane, lost in thought, did not notice when the cigarette's ashes began to fall onto the page. He blew them away carefully and picked up the pen again.

_Nya has four months left. I'm not worried about her health at all, actually. She's been doing great. But the baby... Well, judging by what happened in the alternate timeline, I would have much to fear, if I had the capacity to feel such emotions anymore. Needless to say, my brain is sort of fried._

_But I'll put that aside for now. According to Garmadon, Fate and Destiny are going to do everything in their power to make sure that things get back on track. And that means that both Jay and the baby might be in serious trouble._

_But if Garmadon is correct, then once the baby is born, Fate will give up and Destiny will begin charting a new course for Future. _

_If only I had a way to negotiate with them. It would make things much easier for all of us._

_After I finish with that mission, I have no idea what I will do. Perhaps I will find my father's final gift to me- the tea- and get myself a new life away from everyone who could possibly remind me of the past...future...whatever. I feel that-_

"I thought I smelled smoke," a voice from behind interrupted his thoughts.

Zane slammed the book shut and jerked the cigarette from his lips. "Kai!" He exclaimed. "Please don't sneak up on me like that!"

Kai sat down next to Zane with a grunt. "Sorry," he said. "But I'm curious. When did you start _that?_" He gestured to the little smoke monster in Zane's hand.

Zane felt defensive. "Why do you want to know?" He asked, making a move to stand. "I'm going inside to-"

Kai grabbed his arm and forced him to sit back down. "Don't get like that," he said. "I was trying to start a friendly conversation. Ever heard of those?"

Zane jerked his arm away and stuffed the filter into his mouth. _Just ignore him,_ he told himself as he stared out at the horizon. _Deep breaths. He'll go away eventually._

But Kai did not go away. Instead, he watched the sunset as it cast its beautiful rays of red and gold across the blue sky. And he was silent.

Zane sat awkwardly until the last of the ashes drifted away with the wind. He stuffed the filter into his pocket, intending to dispose of it later in a place where no one would find it. Like a hole in the ground.

"So what's up, Zane?" Kai asked eventually. "What has your brain so messed up that you've started smoking, of all things?"

Zane tapped his pencil on the cover of his journal to a slow, unsteady beat. "Ask me a different question," he said. "Pretty much any other question. Not that one."

"All right," Kai sighed. "Why don't you smile anymore?"

"Because I can't."

"That's not an answer."

"Why is this so important to you all of a sudden? Why are you prying so much?"

"You're my brother, Zane. It's my job to pry when I think something's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong."

"Oh, really?"

Zane stood up and stared, rigid, straight at the distant, dying sun. There were tears in his eyes. "Do me a favor, Kai," he said softly.

"Anything, Zane."

Zane turned his face away and went for the ladder. "Don't tell the others about my smoking." And he was gone.

* * *

**So...yeah. Not much really happened in this chapter, except that we find out that Zane has a journal (don't judge him!) and that he now...smokes. Yeah, I've been thinking on this one for a while now. I needed Zane to do something that a lot of people would sympathize with, and this was the first thing to pop into my head. Everyone grieves differently. **

**Also, I just thought I'd mention: for Zane, it's only been about six months since Nya died. Not to mention, he lost his three children (that's basically like them dying, except for the fact that he technically killed them _himself_, just so that he could save the guy who is unknowingly stealing his wife from him.) Don't judge the Nindroid! **

**Thank you for your time, and please review. And thanks for the five reviews I got earlier this week. It's not as may as I usually get (which still leaves this sort of empty feeling in my chest when I think about it) but, hey. I got something. Constructive criticism appreciated. This is "Hot off the press" content, so tell me if you find errors. I literally finished writing this about thirty minutes ago. **


	5. Progression

**I'm going to try and make the next few chapters a little happier, so...here you go. I'm breaking my two word chapter title pattern with the Progression. Sue me. **

**I'm planning on about 50,000 words for this final installment of the trilogy. I want to have at least 45 reviews by then. Can you all help me out? Please? :) These might be my final few months on Fanfiction, unless I get a lot of positive people ****begging for me to stay. LOTS of reviews. I know you can do it, I've seen my traffic stats. Heck, if a _fifteenth_ of the people who read this reviewed, I would be the happiest person on this site. **

**My goal is to have this story complete by November, since I'll be doing NaNoWriMo. **

**ScarlettNinja: Looked up the song. PERFECT! Wow, I'm going to use that as my inspiration for future Zaya one-shots in my newest story! Thank you for your encouragement. I really appreciate it, since I'm planning on getting a career in the writing field...quite soon, actually. I'm going to write my second original novel in November, then try to get it published by April of 2015. (By the way, what is IG? Immunoglobulin? XD)**

**FireIce: Yes, I do like the name Bea. A lot. It was a runner-up but, unfortunately, I did not choose it :( It's a shame, since it's so cute. It just didn't seen to fit what I had planned for the plot as well as a different name that I chose instead. **

**Guardian Sorceress Alanshee: To answer your question, a filter is actually the mouthpiece of the cigarette. It traps most of the tobacco and other gunk before the clean(er) smoke is inhaled. **

**Song of the week: _Broken, _by _Lifehouse. "_I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing; ****with a broken heart that's still beating." (Do I even need a disclaimer? Don't own the song!) **

**No slash! I don't ship boy/boy or girl/girl!**

* * *

**Progression**

* * *

_Ninety-eight..._ Zane counted in his head as he held his hands under the flow of water._ Ninety-nine..._ He stifled a yawn. _One-hundred._ He turned off the faucet and dried his hands on a damp rag beside the kitchen sink.

He threw the towel aside with a sigh. He was, as usual, tired and ornery. And completely out of his wits. Nothing was unusual.

The Bounty was quiet. Zane was fine with that. He was content to have a day like this after the hectic activity of the week. When they weren't out saving pitifully helpless people from the hands of the Nindroids, they were listening to the two lovebirds- one with a belly the size of a basketball- chirp incessantly about names, genders, and other completely random stuff that made everyone want to scream.

The Walkers _seriously_ needed their own house.

Zane walked onto the deck of the Bounty, where Kai was sunbathing with a book.

Kai? _Reading?_ It made no sense to Zane, but why question it? He wasn't one to pry.

"How many times have you washed your hands today?" Kai asked as he turned the page. He sat in a lawn chair with a pair of swimming trunks. His heavily muscled arms, legs, and torso were exposed, nearly glowing in the light of the bright, noonday sun.

Zane shrugged, then went over to the railing and leaned over the edge. They were anchored over Ninjago city because nearly everyone had errands to run. Lloyd and Cole were getting this week's groceries. Nya and Jay were at their doctor's office getting an ultrasound.

Zane hefted himself up and onto the railing, then stood with his arms outstretched, inhaling the brisk wind as it hit his face. It was invigorating; thrilling, even, to look down and see the city hundreds of feet below them. He lifted one foot, holding it over the wide expanse of blue. _I wonder if I could stay like this until I lose my balance?_ He wondered. Yes, this was certainly thrilling. He could practically taste the-

_Bam!_

A sudden force jerked on his shirt, forcing him onto the deck.

"Zane!" Kai exclaimed. "What...why?"

Zane blinked the stars out of his vision- he had landed on the back of his head- and looked up at Kai, who had tears in his eyes. "Why...what?" He asked breathlessly.

Kai pulled the stunned Nindroid into a tight squeeze. "Holy Serpentine's fangs, Zane. I'm...I'm so sorry!"

Zane blinked. "Sorry for what?"

"I had no idea it was this bad! I-I mean, I knew something was wrong, but this? Zane, what in the name of the First Spinjitsu Master possessed you to pull a stunt like that?"

"Kai," Zane said. "I'm still confused. Why are you crying?"

Kai did not loosen his grip. If anything, his arms felt even more constricting after Zane's last question. "Because I love you, Zane. We all love you."

Then it clicked.

"You..." Zane began slowly. "You thought I was going to jump?"

"Well, yeah! Isn't that what you were doing, with your foot over the edge like that?"

Zane felt his lips turn upward into a smile. "Kai," he began. "I'm flattered. But...no. I was enjoying a breath of fresh air and decided to test my balance. Of course I wasn't going to jump."

Kai slowly loosened his arms. "Oh," he said. "Well, no matter what you were doing, it was slightly unintelligent."

Zane looked at Kai's face, which showed a mixture of relief, confusion, and terror. It was enough to make his slight smile broaden.

This made Kai start to laugh, which in turn drew out a wider grin from Zane.

"Zane," Kai said. "When was the last time I saw you smile?"

This made Zane drop his grin. He stared at Kai with an expression that was borderline angry as he scooted away. "Why do you care?" He snapped.

Kai reined himself in and sighed. His hands sat clenched on his lap. "Good moments never last," he said quietly. "I miss that smile, Zane. I want to know what happened to it."

Zane stood and turned his back. His heart felt as if it had been pulled from his chest, leaving all the bloody entrails behind to die a slow death.

But, of course, he had no heart. Why was it so hard for him to understand? He had only been human for a year. One simple, wonderful, and absolutely heavenly year with two kids and a wife who-

No. He refused to say her name, even in his mind. But his kids...oh, why had he given them up? That was by far the worst mistake he had ever made in his entire life. Susannah, with her energy and witty, Kai-like comments. Kent, with his quiet, reserved smiles and compliments.

Jordan, with those beautiful blue eyes. At three months, he had finally started learning how to laugh. His little toothless grins had been priceless. Jenny had always been so _good_ at making that sweet little bundle of joy giggle and squirm.

Against his will, a tear snaked down his cheek. Then another. Before long, they were dripping onto the floorboards beneath his feet. _I love you all so much, _he wanted to scream. _Why did I give up the perfect life for this? I have nothing here._

"Zane?" Kai stood, eyes on the wet marks beside his brother's boots. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Zane staggered over to the edge of the ship and gripped the railing. He looked over the edge and at the clouds below with blurred vision. From up here, the clouds looked like a series of gentle, rolling hills covered in snow. If he fell, would they catch him?

No, he had more important questions to think about than that. Like whether or not he really _had_ been standing over that railing, one foot over the edge, for the specific purpose of testing his balance. Because the more he thought about it, the more he realized the monstrosity of that lie. Secretly, he knew that he had been hoping for that gust of wind to carry him away.

_"All right,"_ he had said on the morning of their last anniversary together. He had two kids attached to his legs. _"Time to get down. I don't think I can do the steps."_

Susannah had only hugged him tighter._ "But you're so strong, daddy."_ She had said. _"You can do anything."_

Zane slowly sank to his knees, still clutching the railing with white knuckles. "I can't," he whispered. "I'm not strong enough."

"...Zane..." Kai rested a hand on his shoulder. "You're...I can't...what are you talking about?"

Zane hung his head between his hands, his hot tears falling faster. "I'm not strong enough," he said again. "I never was, and I never will be. My whole life...it's a game on Fate's turf." He closed his eyes, hardly even caring that Kai was there to see him so exposed. If this was how his secret was to go down, then so be it. The pressure was killing him; he had to let some of it go before it hurt him even more.

Kai wrapped a tentative arm around Zane's shoulder and pulled him close. "I don't know what's going on here," he said softly, "but I'm here for you, okay? Do you want to talk about it?"

Zane shied away from Kai's arm, but was unable to stand. He released the railing with his left hand and pressed his heel into his forehead. "It hurts so bad, Kai," he sobbed softly.

"Your head?"

"No," Zane trembled as he shook his head. "My heart. Even if my body is intact...my heart, my soul, they are withering like old flowers."

"Why?" Kai pressed him patiently.

"Because."

"That's not an answer."

Zane looked up at Kai's concerned face and snapped. "Leave me alone!" He shouted. "I can't do this with you right now!"

Kai shook his head. He looked conflicted for a moment, then he brightened. He dug into Zane's pocket.

Zane tried to slap Kai's hand away, but his aim was off because of the tears. What was that prying, entirely annoying fire ninja doing?

A moment later, Kai retracted his hand, brandishing a half-empty box of cigarettes. He smiled weakly as he pulled out two, then shoved the box back into the white gi. With a small fire from his fingertips, he lit them and handed one to Zane. "Here," he said. "I probably shouldn't be condoning this, but you need to calm down. Plus," he held up his hand, smoke spilling from the end of the terrible monster. "It's been a few years. I want to have at least one more."

Zane hesitantly set the filter between his teeth and inhaled. It was hard to not burn himself when his body was spasming so much. "Y-you used to..."

"Yeah," Kai said, smoke coming out from between his lips. "After dad died, things got really hard for me and Nya. I was a light smoker, at least until Sensei found us and dragged me off to his monastery. I went through sudden, depressive withdrawals after that."

"That explains your moodiness during those first few months," Zane said, sniffing. "But you _did_ eventually get better."

Kai smiled and nodded. "Yeah," he grunted. "I guess I did." Once again, he set a hand on Zane's shoulder. "You'll get better too, 'kay? Everyone's got their low points in life. The key is to push past it. Live and love. That's how I overcame it."

"Love what?" Zane asked. "I have no one left."

"You have me," Kai said, blowing out another puff of smoke. "You have Cole, Lloyd, Jay, and Nya. We're a family, Zane. No matter what you did, we'll still be there for you."

"And..." Zane said slowly. The drugs were starting to cloud his mind. It was horrible. And wonderful. "...What if you were to find out that I was a murderer, Kai? What if you found out that I had done a deed so horribly unforgivable that-"

"I'd still love you," Kai interjected. "Dude, you realize that I'm only doing this right now because I want you to know that I still see _you_, and not some villain. A lot of people have a bad habit of stereotyping people who smoke. So I'm proving that I love you by smoking a cigarette of my own."

"Well..." Zane rolled the cigarette between his fingers impulsively. "What if you found out that I killed my wife and my children? Would you still love me?"

This made Kai pause mid-breath. He coughed loudly, trying to get the stuff out of his lungs. "_What?_" He asked. "You're kidding, right?"

Zane continued without regarding Kai's question. "And if I told you that my wife was actually your sister. What would you think?"

Kai finally got his breathing under control, and he took another whiff, bewildered. "I'd think you were insane," he said. "A chemical imbalance, caused by severe trauma, made you have a wildly vivid hallucination."

"Chemical imbalances?" Zane repeated. "Where'd you learn all this stuff?"

Kai jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. "My book," he said. "I noticed that something is wrong with you, so I talked to Cole a few days ago."

Zane suddenly felt nervous. "What did he say?"

"He mentioned some sarcastic comment you made to him a few months back about having manic depression and all that jazz. So I picked up a couple books."

"And what's your diagnosis?" Zane asked.

"Stress," Kai replied easily. "You are dealing with a whole load of unnecessary stress, and it's beating you down."

"...I see," Zane sighed. "Nothing new there. I already went to a psychiatrist in Ninjago City about a month after Nya's dea..." More tears. "He wanted me to come back for treatment, but I left before our first appointment was scheduled."

Kai threw his head back with a moan. "You're a lunatic," he said. "And I'm not just saying that. I really and truly think that you need some serious help, along with a padded cell and lots of prescriptions."

"You don't mean that."

"Actually, I do. But the good news is, I've decided that I'll be your therapist." Kai's smile broadened. "I'm going to help you demolish your stress, and also get rid of these creepy fantasies of you marrying my sister."

"But they aren't fantasies-"

"First off," Kai said. "No more hand washing. After you're done with that cigarette, I want you to go to the bathroom. Come out and sit on the deck with me straightaway."

Zane was appalled. "I can't wash my hands?" He asked. "But...that's absurd!"

"No," Kai said. "You're the absurd one. Listen to me, and listen to me closely. This obsessive-compulsive disorder, it's gonna be the first to go. Then, I'm going to tackle your post-traumatic stress disorder. And last, but certainly not least, I'll cut through the last of your bonds by demolishing the bipolar disorder. And- here's the kicker- I'm going to do it in secret. No one has to know. You won't have to worry about others pitying your unstable brain, because I'll be the only one who knows."

Zane nodded slowly. "I'm game," he sighed. "My life's already horrible. Why not at least try to make it better by forcing me to stop washing my hands?"

Kai slapped his shoulder. "That's the spirit," he said, not realizing that Zane was being sarcastic. He reached back into Zane's pocket and drew out the cigarettes again. "One more thing." He snatched the half-dead smoke from Zane's lips and rolled it between his fingers for a moment before stomping it under his boot. "Cold, hard reality," he said as he dropped his own and let the ashes smolder beside Zane's. "The first step to finding the truth is to clear away the smoke."

He tossed the box of cigarettes over his shoulder, and they disappeared into the cold clouds far below.

Zane gasped. "Kai!" He exclaimed. "What did you do?"

Kai's gentle hazel eyes looked mildly sympathetic, but mostly amused. He was a cold, cruel man. "I'm curing you," he said. "Hold on." He walked over to pick up his book from where he had left it on his seat, then flipped it open. "Do you ever feel the compulsion to check things, like the knobs on the stove, over and over again, just to make sure that they're actually off?"

Zane, who was still caught up on his lost smokes, answered dumbly. "Yeah?"

Kai nodded, then traced his finger down the page a ways. "An unhealthy desire to keep everything neat and clean? A compulsion to organize everything by color, size, etcetera?"

Zane blinked, then realized he was holding his breath. He exhaled the last of his smoke. It was scary how sedated he felt after breathing that stuff. "Not the color part," he said. "But...yes. For years now, I've had a compulsion to be tidy."

Kai nodded again. "Okay," he scanned the next page. This one's a no-brainer. Do you turn to drugs to relieve your anxiety?"

"...Yes."

"A hand washing compulsion? You count to a hundred before letting yourself turn off the water, correct?"

"This is getting annoying."

"Of course you do," Kai answered for him. "You went to wash your hands ten minutes ago. And twenty minutes ago. And twenty-five minutes ago. Next question- this one is closely tied with the compulsion of checking things over and over- do you feel that you are a failure if you don't protect everyone? For example: you may check the stove's knobs twenty times over because you don't want to start a fire and hurt everyone."

"Yes."

"Excellent," Kai turned several more pages. "You know, I can't even pronounce half of the words in here. Do doctors come up with big words just to confuse us normal people? Things like epiphysis and melatonin. What the heck am I looking at, here?"

"The pineal gland?" Zane offered.

Kai snapped his fingers. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it." Zane sat back and listened with only half an ear to what Kai as saying after that. He didn't care. Not really. His life was a wreck that no one could fix. That much was sadly apparent as he brought his fingers up to the chain around his neck.

Nya's necklace. How he had managed to keep it after time traveling, he could never figure out. But here it was, a constant reminder of days long past: Nya's tiny ring and her frozen tear. Both stuck in place by the chain that used to hold her engagement ring from Jay.

Zane slipped the ring onto his first knuckle and held it up for examination. Kai's voice was now a low drone in the back of his head.

Why hadn't he attached a locket with a portrait of his children to this chain? He had taken them for granted. He had the perfect life, and then...he had to go and wreck it himself.

Susannah and Kent had been so sweet with the new baby. He remembered how they would take turned holding the child, stroking its fuzzy head with many little coos and giggles.

And how many pictures had he taken of them? None. He had been selfishly absorbed in his own little world. So absorbed that he had Kai and Lloyd worrying about him, trying to force him to eat, and trying to make him stop stressing over chip bags opened from the wrong end. So absorbed, in fact, that he risked the health of his team by throwing them into an alternate timeline where they had to fight Cryptor all over again!

For all he knew, the ninja would lose this battle because Jay survived.

When Zane came right down to the root of his problem, all he found was a lot of selfishnesses. He had wanted Nya and Jay alive, not caring about what plans Destiny had for them. He had given up his nearly perfect life with three children and a wife who cared for him for this slice of hell?

"...I'm sorry," he whispered as he dropped the chain. "I'm an idiot. A selfish, self-centered, self-absorbed idiot."

"You're not even paying attention anymore, are you?" Kai slammed the book shut with a sigh. "Okay, maybe it's a bit too soon to tackle your hand washing compulsion. We'll start with the smoking. Once you can go a week without cigarettes, we'll move on to the hand washing. Okay?"

Zane nodded. "Sure." He played with his fingers, creating small ice crystals in his palm. Nya had loved this. He would come up with all sorts of designs, all symmetrical like a snowflake, and give them to her to look at for a few short seconds before they melted in her warm palm.

Kai scooped up the cigarette remains from the floor and dropped them over the side. "I know I'm littering," he said. "But you aren't going to tell on me. Besides," he grinned cockily. "We're ninja. We get away with a bunch of stuff."

Zane held out his open palm, which held four translucent crystals, and blew gently. They flew into the air, caught a breeze, and drifted away.

"You're totally lost in your own little world," Kai groaned. "What, are you hallucinating or something? What do you see right now?"

Zane slowly looked up. "I see you," he said. "In a pair of swimming trunks."

Kai looked down. "Yeah," he said, sounding disappointed. "So...I'm curious. How vivid are your hallucinations about living with my sister?"

Zane frowned. Is that what Kai thought? That he was _hallucinating?_ That he was just a mad kook who needed to be pitied?

Well. Just for fun, he would play the part. See how angry he could make Kai.

"Oh, very vivid," he said. "We adopted two kids, but then I turned into a human and we had a child of our own."

Kai's face blanched. "And..." He cleared his throat. "You can vividly remember the night that the baby was...made?"

"Very vividly. She's a beautiful woman, Kai. And an excellent kisser. Jay is very lucky."

Kai dragged a hand across his face. "I want to know what happened," he said. "To your mind, not the...gross details of your imaginary spooning. How did your brain get this messed up?"

Zane threw his head back, hitting the railing. Of course, he was just having fun with Kai. He was playing along with the 'hallucination' theory.

So why was he having doubts?

What if he really was insane? So much so, in fact, that he had imagined a life with Nya in the 'future'?

Zane stood with a sigh and turned his back to Kai, too confused and torn to speak. It was a scary prospect, this theory about his mind playing tricks on him.

But the question of the day. If he really did make it all up himself, why did he have all these problems? His disorders hadn't appeared until after the incident with Cryptor. It had started with PTSD, then he had moved on to OCD. There was one more, which he couldn't remember at that exact moment, that had popped up right before Nya passed. After that, he had started dealing with manic depression.

"I'm not crazy," he said. "It was real. All of it. A true friend wouldn't doubt me when I finally started to pour my heart out, after years of bottling it up. I hardly even talked to Nya about my problems, since she had so many of her own. Especially during that last year, when...she..."

"When she...died?" Kai filled in, brow raised.

Zane, with his back still turned, began to walk away. He did not want to talk anymore. Kai had turned him off.

"Hey, wait!" Kai ran to catch Zane. "Don't you want to talk?"

"Not if you're not willing to listen," Zane snapped angrily. His manic depression was kicking in again. "Aren't the lovebirds going to be back soon? I don't want to talk if they're going to be listening in."

Kai grabbed his shoulder. "The roof," he said. "We can talk up there."

Zane reached up, prepared to slap Kai's hand away. "Why do you want me to spill out my guts for you?" He asked. "You were just calling me a lunatic, remember? In your books, I'm labeled. No one should believe me."

"Labeled?" Kai grabbed Zane's hand, forcing him to calm down. "Look, I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to be judging you like that. I mean...you're Zane. Weird is your middle name."

Zane sniffed. "That makes me feel a lot better. Let me go."

"No!" Kai pulled him back across the deck. "We're going to the roof."

Zane's emotions were so mixed up. He was angry at Kai for picking on him, but he was also grateful for being saved from a fall over the railing. He felt guilty about the sudden realization of his utter selfishness. He was also stunned by the idea of giving up smoking so abruptly, after having spent nearly two months developing the habit.

"Fine." He snapped. He jerked his hand away and stomped up to the ladder. "Let's get this over with." He climbed up, then sat down on the warm shingles.

Without waiting for Kai to join him, he began. "Jay died after proposing to Nya."

"No, he didn't." Kai argued.

"In the other timeline, yes. He did. Then I ended up marrying her later on. And then she...died...during childbirth."

"She died while giving birth to this baby?" Kai asked.

"No. This is nearly eight years after Jay's passing." Zane crossed his arms and leaned forward, sticking his face into the wind. "She aborted this baby."

Kai started. "She did what?" He shook his head. "And I let her do it..."

Zane paused. "I don't actually know what happened with that," he said. "If you knew that she was pregnant already, why didn't you stop her in my timeline?"

"Maybe I didn't know yet," Kai said. "I had suspicions when Jay proposed, but I didn't have any proof until at least two weeks after that. If she aborted the baby before then, I probably would have dismissed it as my pessimism."

Zane grunted. "Maybe."

Kai scooted closer to Zane and elbowed him. "I guess I have to apologize," he said.

"For what?"

Kai smiled awkwardly. "You've been acting weird since the day that Jay proposed to her. I've thought that you had a crush on her."

"Which is partially true," Zane admitted. "But I'm trying really hard not to be bitter. I chose this path. I shouldn't be punishing Jay for my choices."

Kai nodded. "I feel you," he said. "I was wide awake when Jay snuck into Nya's bedroom that night. I chose not to stop them, and so I'm choosing to not be angry with them now that they're throwing the title of Uncle into my face." He crossed his legs and set his hands on his lap. "If you don't mind me asking, what were your kids like?"

Zane looked away, trying to ignore the dagger in his chest. Losing his kids was probably the worst part of this whole misadventure. "It's...hard to talk about them," he forced out.

"How many were there?"

"Three."

"Boys or girls?"

Zane saw what Kai was doing. Asking simple questions, gently prying answers out. "Two boys, one girl."

"How old?"

"The twins were three years old. Jordan was only two months."

"Wow."

Zane stared at his feet. "Yeah." He swallowed a hard lump in his throat.

"Is there any way that you could get them back?"

"Jordan? No. But since the twins were adopted, maybe. They haven't even been born yet in this timeline." He used his sleeve to wipe away the tears. "I still...remember the last time I saw them. They were getting into the car with you and Jenny, yawning and rubbing their eyes because it was so late. But they were...they were trying really hard to stay awake, because they were so excited to get to spend the night at your house."

"Who's Jenny?" Kai asked, voice quiet and soft.

"She was your wife."

The fire ninja seemed strangely confused by this. "I get married?" He asked. "I...that's weird."

Zane turned to face him. "I was surprised, too. I sort of thought that Cole would be first."

"Cole is still single eight years from now?"

Kai was sure asking a lot of questions. Zane stared off into the blue sky, his palms clammy. Talking to Kai was like rubbing salt into his wound. It hurt, but then it felt better.

Why hadn't he done this sooner?

* * *

**Poor guy...he actually thinks that it's his fault that Nya died. ****And yes. You may have noticed that Zane has fallen into the same trap that Nya was stuck in after Jay died. I am going to fix him, promise. Please forgive me. It almost seems like Zane gave in to Kai's prying too quickly. It's probably just me who thinks that, though. **

**I think that I know how to end this story, but I'm not entirely sure. It'll be bittersweet, probably a little tragic, but nothing too terrible. But sometime by the end of the month...*whistles*...hold on to your hats, people. I have an epic childbirth planned for y'all. **

**Oh, yes! After much consideration and name searching (thanks for all of your super cute names, by the way!), I finally decided on the baby's gender. You'll find out in the next chapter, which is almost completely written. I'll try to have it up within a few days. **

**It seems like a LOT of you want Nya and Zane back together, but I'm actually wondering how on earth I would do that! Do you want me to kill Jay, then have Zane help raise their little baby? Or do you want me to somehow get back the life that they had in NJTWSIT? You guys totally rejected the Pixal idea, and I'm starting to ****see why. My doing so would squash all your hopes for a perfect Zaya ending! (But none of my endings are perfect. You know this.) Thanks for your detailed input, ForeverDreamer12. **

**By the way. Do you guys like my new avatar? One person said that it was depressing, but I actually thought that it was more hopeful and happy than the last one, since it was displaying true love and all that jazz. Your thoughts? **

**Please review, give me constructive criticism, and follow/fav! It means the world to me. **


	6. Past and Future

**I'm not proud of the way that this chapter turned out. I know what I want to happen, I'm just having trouble timing everything properly. Portions of this chapter should have happened during Nya's third or fourth month instead of now, but...oh, well. I'll work with it. Sorry for dumping two important OC's on you so suddenly, that's a mistake on my part. I hope you can forgive me. **

**pooh bear: I didn't notice that, LOL. Yeah, I guess Tomoya did smoke. Please note that this is purely coincidental. I was not copying Clannad then (although...well, with that part where Nya died...)**

**SkarlettNinja: My mistake...I should have clarified the fact that I never published my first novel, since it was absolutely terrible. XD And yes, I used to check knobs and plugs all the time, too. Hehe...I think I have a mild case of OCPD, which would explain why I get so embarrassed when even the tiniest things are wrong with my grammar. It's like...I can't even THINK when I know something's wrong with my text! **

**Jinxie Jaymes: I already thought of that, but decided against it. I am a HUGE advocate of man/woman lifetime relationship. I don't support divorce or homosexuality (sorry!) ...I'm totally gonna get flamed for this...sigh.**

**ZaneSprinklePixal: Welcome aboard! I love seeing new faces! I'm glad that you like my ****writing, I really try hard. :) Wait...you can relate to Zane's mental illnesses? Seriously? Do you have one of them? If so, I'd love some pointers ;) **

**FireIce: If I told you who was going to die, what would be the fun of reading to find out? ;) Well, if you MUST know, I actually have two character deaths planned for this story. But they're not real deaths, so...IDK what to call it! (*w*) Just stay tuned, I promise that this story will have a happy ending. I have it all planned out, so keep your eyes peeled for foreshadowing (I know. I rarely use that) and little hints. **

**I cried a bit while writing the first part of this chapter. It was so bad that I had to talk my good friend, LauraMarieAK. She started singing christmas lyrics. Even though I despise christmas songs, she did manage to cheer me up.**

**Did you real that last part? DUDE. I cried! My own writing jerked tears out of me at two in the morning! No, I 'taint gone soft, Morhpy...sniff...**

* * *

**Past and Future**

* * *

Zane was not certain how much time he had spent on the roof of the Bounty with Kai. Ten minutes or thirty, they were too deep in conversation to know or care.

_It feels good, _Zane thought,_ to have someone listening to my story._

When he got close to the end of the story- before Nya's death- he stopped. It was too emotional for him to tackle at that moment. He slowly got to his feet, signaling that he was done. "What do you think, so far?" He asked.

"Of your story?" Kai stood beside Zane. He shook his head. "It's crazy. Ludicrous. But..."

"But?" Zane pressed him.

Kai looked thoughtful. "But I trust you," he said. "And I've never seen you look more serious in my life. I believe you. Reluctantly, I will accept your tale."

Zane felt relieved. "Thank you," he said, releasing a breath he did not realize he had been holding in.

"How do you feel?" Kai asked.

"About what?"

Kai gestured Zane. "You," he said. "How do you feel right now?"

"Like someone ripped all of the passion, sentiment, and devotion from my chest and mixed it in a blender, then tried to force it down my throat."

Kai winced. "Ouch," he sucked in a breath through his teeth. "I don't ever want to know what that feels like."

"I pray you never do."

Kai's expressions mirrored his broken friend's. "When was the last time anyone gave you a hug?" He asked.

Zane ran his hands up his arms and gripped his biceps. "I don't know," he whispered. "Months."

"That's way too long," Kai said. He opened his arms. "Come here."

Zane eyed Kai skeptically. Hugs? Those were intimate things, reserved for Nya and his children. For his family.

But wasn't Kai family?

"What's wrong?" Kai looked confused. "I thought you liked hugs."

"I-I do," Zane said, taking a step backward. "I just...I think that..."

Kai closed the distance between them, cutting Zane off. He wrapped his arms around his brother and held him close, pressing his face into Zane's shoulder.

Hesitantly, Zane returned the embrace. His chin slowly nested itself into the area between the fire ninja's neck and collarbone. Then he clutched at Kai's bare back with wavering, desperate hands.

Kai was warm. Zane remembered Nya describing the warmth in her writing, but he had never experienced it like this before. Sure, he had gotten hugs, but never this sweet or full of emotion.

What had Zane done to deserve such a perfect brother?

His chest began to spasm, and then he was crying softly but audibly, tears free-falling from his chin. "Why?" He breathed. "Why did I choose this path? I had it all...I love my kids...Nya would have been so disappointed by my decisions."

Kai shushed him softly, his grip tightening. "You're overthinking this," he said. His eyes were moist with empathetic tears. "We can do this, Zane. Together."

Zane's legs gave out. He clung to Kai for nearly all his support. "Together..." He repeated, testing the strange word on his tongue. "I...but...why, Kai? Why would you willingly take this from me?"

"Because I really do love you, Zane," Kai replied, voice cracked. "Not romantically, but...you know. We're brothers. I can't believe that you think I'm _not_ willing."

Zane had to work hard to keep his sobs quiet. It was incredibly embarrassing.

"No, Zane," Kai said gently. "Don't hold back, please. You need this moment."

That was all it took. Like flipping a switch, Zane obeyed this gentle command. He inhaled a deep breath, then screamed out all of the rage, hurt, and frustration that he had been holding in since Nya's death. It was long, guttural, and loud enough to rattle Kai's bones.

And Kai just held him tightly, tears leaking out of his closed eyes. He did not let go, or even loosen his grip on Zane's gi. "I have you, Zane," he said. "You're safe."

"D-don't let go," Zane sobbed. "Don't leave me alone."

"I'm not going anywhere." Kai was baffled by this very sudden cry of passion from his friend who usually hid every emotion behind a wall of concrete. _How long has it been since Zane cried like this?_ He asked himself. _Surely he's had his fair share of tears, but this..._

Zane's weight became too heavy for Kai to support, and he slowly sank to his knees. The Nindroid did not even notice. He screamed again, this time a little weaker. He choked on it halfway through, triggering his gag reflex. He dry-retched vehemently.

_He doesn't need treatments,_ Kai thought. _He needs love. He's been without it for far too long; loneliness is devouring him like a cancer._

It took nearly fifteen minutes for Zane to calm down enough to loosen his grip on Kai's shoulders. Another five or so minutes and he was reluctantly letting go of the warmth. His body was shuddering uncontrollably and his face was tear-stained, but he looked better. His eyes, although red, looked a little brighter. His lips, which still quivered like a child's, looked less grim.

"Good," Kai said. "Now, can I see a smile?"

It took a moment, but Zane finally configured his muscles and gave Kai a weak grin. It fell almost instantly.

Kai did not care, though. It was a smile, and that's all that mattered. He slapped Zane's shoulder and offered up a grin of his own. "This remains between you and me, okay?" He said.

Zane nodded. "What would happen to your pride if you admitted that you cried on my shoulder?" He managed to lift one blond eyebrow to accentuate the tease.

Kai gestured to himself. "Me?" He asked. "No, Zane. You must be hallucinating. I didn't cry."

Zane shook his head. "Neither did I."

Kai stuck out a hand for Zane to shake. "Deal."

* * *

Nya and the other ninja eventually returned from their visit to town. She was smiling like a child as she accepted Jay's hand and painfully leapt from her samurai mech. Jay looked dazed, head floating on cloud nine as Lloyd and Cole loaded groceries into their arms.

Nya wrinkled her nose as she passed Kai and entered the kitchen. "Jay, I swear I'm smelling cigarette smoke again."

Kai inhaled sharply, backing up a single step. Whoops. They'd forgotten to wash their mouths after the smokes. He tried to breathe through his nose inconspicuously. Zane, who was meaning against the wall, seemed apathetically disengaged as he traced the veins in his wrist with a finger. Funny to think of a robot with veins under their skin.

"Your nose is just sensitive," Jay tried to argue with Nya. "We passed a couple smokers on the street. The scent must have clung to us."

After casting a prolonged glance in Kai's direction, Nya sighed and ran a hand over her huge belly. Her loose-fitting maternity clothes only accentuated the baby's size under her skin. "Maybe," she said. "I'm not entirely convinced."

Cole dropped his groceries on the table unceremoniously and sat down beside Lloyd. "Okay, you two," he said. "You refused to tell us the baby's gender on the mech. Will you tell us now?"

After exchanging a glance with Jay, Nya held out a hand. "Baby's hungry," she said. "You followed the list, right?"

Cole rolled his eyes, then reached into one of the bags. He pulled out a chocolate bar and slapped it into her hand.

"Thank you." Nya unwrapped the candy and took a big bite. She looked a little bit smug as she elbowed Jay. "Tell them," she said, mouth full. "What's the baby's gender going to be?"

Jay shook his head, shaking himself out of the daze. "His name will be Wren Tate Walker," he said. "The ultrasound says it'll be a boy."

Lloyd clapped his hands on the table. "Great!" He said, beaming. "Congratulations, you two!"

Nya giggled as Jay pressed a hand to her baby bump, rubbing it gently. "I knew it would be a boy," she said. "He's gonna be so cute, too."

Jay nodded. "Definitely," he said quietly, eyes on his hand.

"What's wrong, Jay?" Cole asked.

Jay jerked his eyes up. "Nothing," he said. "I couldn't be happier, honestly. I..." He inhaled, shaking his head. "I can't believe that in just a few short months I'm going to be a dad. I hardly feel grown-up enough for such a responsibility."

"You'll never be grown-up enough," Zane said, blue eyes shifting uncomfortably between Jay and Nya. "It's a growing process. One that takes patience and dedication."

Jay put a hand behind Nya's head and pulled her face close to his. "I feel better now," he said sarcastically. "The Sensei says I'll be a kid forever." He pressed their lips together, closing his eyes as Nya gripped his grey T-shirt with both hands and leaned in, moaning.

Kai turned to look at Zane, who had his arms crossed over his chest. He was staring at the floor intently, as if there was something important in the wood patterns. His eyes trembled.

With a sigh, Kai rested a hand on Zane's shoulder, making him look up, startled. "E-excuse me," he said softly. He brushed Kai's hand away and left the room.

Kai let his hand fall to his side as a clenched fist. For the first time in a long time, he looked up at Jay with a twinge of resentment as he pulled his lips away from Nya's. _Do you even realize?_ He asked. _Or are you blind, like I had been only a few short hours ago..._

* * *

Zane sat with his legs crossed on his bunk, hands clasped, and closed his eyes.

He had done this a couple times. The first had been an accident, the second an experiment to see if he had just gone mad. This third time, he was doing it simply because he wanted answers.

He shifted slightly, moving to the lotus position, and embraced the darkness of his eyelids.

* * *

Kai opened the door to the bunk room and peeked in. Zane was sitting on the bed in the lotus position, eyes pressed shut and chin down, near his chest.

Was Zane meditating?

"Hey," Kai said. "You okay?"

No response. Zane's breathing was steady and slow.

_Just like Sensei Wu,_ Kai realized. _He used to be like this all the time, except he burned incense to increase the ambiance._

No matter how Kai poked or prodded the ninja of ice, he could not get him to open his eyes, or even change his breathing pattern.

_Wow,_ Kai thought. _He's better at this than Sensei ever was._

* * *

It took a long time for Zane to make it there. Many long minutes of emptying his mind, stretching close to an hour before he finally saw a light through the darkness.

He moved closer to it, taking care to not think too much. He did not want to break his concentration and end up on his bed again with no answers. "Magnateship," he called out. "Permission to approach."

Soft voices, like the whisperings of a hushed crowd, answered his call.

Taking a deep breath, Zane entered the bright orb.

A sharp pulling sensation followed, like that of his soul getting sucked from his body.

And just like that, he was free. There were no emotions. No love, hate, joy, or even anger. Separated from his body, he felt like a new man. He could dance for joy, if such a thing were possible in this realm.

"Why have you come here, Zane?" A soft voice asked.

Zane's spirit bowed reverently as a tall silhouette slowly took shape from the mist before him. "I need help," he said.

The silhouette took the shape of a man, tall, blue-eyed, and blinked his long lashes. His white gown rippled majestically above his ankles, where it then dissolved to mist around bare feet that floated on the white, everlasting expanse of nothingness. "Your brothers are unable to help you?" He asked. His voice was a pleasant tenor.

"No, Tancred," Zane said. "They cannot. Where is Pensee? I must speak with both of you."

Tancred stood straighter than before, holding out his left hand. Mist dissolved around the hem of his sleeve.

Zane watched with as much awe as his emotionless soul could muster as a woman, dressed in black robes that behaved in the same manner as Tancred's, appeared and grabbed her mate's proffered hand. Her light, angelic blond hair sharply contrasted her black eyes.

"My son," she said slowly, ruminatively. "Why have you come here?"

Son. That was what Pensee always called him, although Zane knew they were not related. Tancred, being more decorous and enigmatic, preferred to call him by his name.

"I have come for answers," Zane said. "You refused me before; I will not be turned away a second time."

Pensee blinked, unfazed, while Tancred frowned. "I cannot tell you the future," he said. "We have said this already."

"But you control the future," Zane argued. "Is there not something that can be done?"

The ethereal man shook his head, disturbing a crown of raven black hair. "You may use the Past to guide you," he said. "Use her wisdom, ask her your questions. But my job is to protect the future, not disturb it."

"You did it once before," Zane pleaded. "I was brought back in time eight years. You broke the rules then, can you not break them now?"

Pensee blinked again. "My son," she said. "We want to help you. And we will. But we are lesser beings who must answer to Fate and Destiny. Surely you understand that breaking the rules again would only hurt us all."

Zane felt a quiet twinge of desperation in his otherwise dormant, peaceful mind. "Why did you do it the first time, then?" He asked.

"We cannot answer that," Tancred said. "Giving you those answers will only interfere with Destiny's new plan."

"New plan?" Zane crossed his arms. "How hard is it to make a new plan? Couldn't he do it again?"

"Do you not understand?" Tancred seemed to grow taller, glaring down at the distraught Nindroid. "If we change anything, we change _everything_. If we save a man from being blown up by a bomb, his wife will never fall in love with the young widower a year later, and they will never have the second child who later saves the world from evil."

Pensee held up a slender hand, patiently requesting silence. "Zane," she said. "I am sorry. The future is off limits to even me. But I can answer almost any question you want from the past."

"All right," Zane responded sharply. "Why did you choose me?"

This made Pensee start. "Do we need a reason?" She asked.

"Yes."

"Because you are special," Tancred said. "Besides even the sons of the Ultimate Spinjitsu Master cannot do what you do."

"And...what is that?" Zane asked.

"We cannot say," Tancred said.

"Journey before destination, my son," Pensee said. "If you only focus on getting from one town to the next, you miss out on the scenery. Do you understand?"

Hesitantly, Zane nodded. "All right," he sighed. "I just..." He trailed off uncertainly.

"What?" Pensee pressed him. "You want to say something?"

Zane gathered up his courage. "Why did you choose me?" He asked.

"Excuse me?" Tancred released his mate's hand and clasped both behind his back.

Zane pointed to himself. "I can talk to you whenever I want," he said. "So can Garmadon and Wu. Why can't anyone else?"

"Garmadon and Wu are different," Pensee explained. "As the sons of the First Spinjitsu Master, they are practically gods themselves. They can counsel with us whenever they feel the need, aided by the spirit smoke."

"But I don't need the incense," Zane said. "What makes me so different? Why have I always been different? I _must_ know why I have been chosen."

"You don't give up, do you?" Pensee sighed. "All right. I will tell-"

"You can't," Tancred cut her off.

"A piece of the past," Pensee continued patiently. "The answers that you want, Zane, are found in your father's past. The journals."

_The journals,_ Zane thought. _Of course!_ The detailed account of how he had been created. Surely there were some answers to be found there.

He bowed again, then allowed his mind to slip back toward consciousness. "Thank you, Past and Future," he said. "I will return soon."

Tancred and Pensee raised their right hands, fingers splayed; a symbol of respect.

With that confusing image repeating itself in his mind- why they were saying that they respected him, he wished he knew- he went back through the tunnel and, not resisting the sharp pull of his soul going back to his body, returned to his native realm.

* * *

Kai looked up from his book, settling an absent eye on Zane's form on the bed, still cross-legged and unmoving.

He shook his head, disbelieving. It had been an hour. Zane had not so much as twitched. _I should take lessons from him, _he thought. _He's better than Sensei ever was. _He turned his eyes back to the book- _Modern Psychology-_ and began reading again.

He was still having trouble pronouncing certain words. He'd given up on trying to pronounce that one word- neurophysiology- a while ago. To him, it looked like it was nothing more than a bunch of random letters strewn together just for the fun of it.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zane move. Kai shut his book and watched as the Nindroid straightened and blinked his eyes open, looking troubled and thoughtful.

"Welcome back," Kai said. "Did you have fun in the world of weirdos?"

Zane stretched his arms, then looked out the window. "What time is it?" He asked.

"Around five," Kai answered. "Why?"

Zane shrugged, then slid down from his bunk. "I was...meditating...for a while, then?"

"Yep."

"Huh," Zane scratched the back of his head and walked toward the door. "I have to go."

"What?" Kai leapt from his top bunk and followed Zane. "Where are you going?"

"Home," Zane explained patiently. "I have to go through my father's things tonight."

"Tonight?" Kai repeated. "But why? This is a little bit sudden."

"I know," Zane said patiently. His stride did not slow. "But it must be done. I've been too long without answers."

Kai tried to sort out his scattered thoughts. What if Zane had no intention of returning? What if, in a fit of frustration, his manic depression got the better of him and he...ended himself? It seemed illogical, but very possible, according to the books he had read.

"Wait," Kai grabbed Zane's shoulder, forcing him to stop. "Can I come with you?"

Zane hesitated, eyes darting in the direction of the stairs to his left before meeting Kai's deep hazels again. "I...don't know," he answered finally. "I'm on a delicate mission, and I..."

"Great," Kai said, slapping his shoulder. "Thanks, bro. Let's get going. We'll borrow Nya's suit."

Zane stood with his mouth open in a wide O, confused. "But I never said...why are you..." He met Kai's firm gaze and reluctantly nodded. "Fine," he sighed, his expression relaxing. "Bring a jacket."

* * *

**Tada! You now know the baby's gender and name! Little Wren Tate, which meant Cheerful Bird (eh, so what if I took poetic license?). Thanks for the idea, NAJ! I'm in love with that name. **

**Eight reviews last week. WOW! I can't even begin to express my gratitude. Thanks! Can this continue? Please? :) **

**So do you like Past (Pensee) and Future (Tancred)? Not much? Not at all? Yeah..sorry. I wanted to introduce them last week, but...ugh. It didnt work out. I'm so angry! This chapter feels horrible!**

**Please review, anyway? Constructive criticism? Suggestions? What do you want to happen? What do you NOT want to see happen? Do you really want Zane and Nya to get back together? I could finagle that, but it's actually not in the plan right now...**

**Oh, yes. One more thing. I'm going to change the day that this story gets updated on. It'll now be updated (hopefully) every Thursday. Fridays are too busy now. **

**Have a good week, and see you later today for the next Nya's Journey One-shot!**


	7. Nindriods

**FireIce: I don't have much of a problem with errors in my ANs, unless they are incredibly embarrassing. And...yes. I know that something in that first line is off. I've tried to fix it, but got fed up and decided to let it slide. How would you rewrite that first paragraph? And actually, finagle IS a word! I didn't believe it either until I looked it up. It basically means "To obtain something by devious or dishonest means." So I was being sort of sarcastic. **

**Speedy: What exactly are you implying? That I should give Zane MPD and make him kill himself? XD yeah...we'll scratch that part. What's an OTP? And in my defense, I had suspicions that you were pooh bear. I just didn't say anything. :)**

** Zane's Girlfriend: No, Pensee and Tancred are not angels. They are supernatural deities who work for the First Spinjitsu Master. Which I guess is kind of the same, but not quite. **

** SkarlettNinja: I know! That's the part where I cried. Making Zane go through that much pain was difficult for me to write, but I felt that it needed to be done. **

**NorthAmericanJaguar: You bring up a good point. Nya did say that, didn't she? Well, I'm not going to give away anything. :3 Sorry. Are you SURE that you're excited for whatever I do? Because I'm not very confident. Pensee and Tancred are going to be a big part of this story, and everyone seems really on the fence about liking them or not. So people might not like the direction I'm taking this fic. **

**I'm not proud of this chapter. I'm trying to include on of Ever's requests into it, so I feel like I'm shoving more OOC stuff down your throats. Ugh.**

* * *

**Nindroids **

* * *

Lloyd reclined in his chair with a tired sigh, then grabbed his anatomy book from the lamp stand and flipped it open.

He wasn't sure why, but the study of human anatomy had really started to interest him as of late. The nervous and cardiovascular systems piqued his interest the most. It was absolutely amazing how the lungs worked day and night to produce air for the heart to receive via the IVC, or the inferior vena cava. And then it would work its way through-

"What are you up to?" Jay asked, strolling into the room with a smile bright enough to light the bottom of an ocean.

Lloyd looked up, annoyed. Why was Jay always so chipper? "Something more productive than you," he snapped.

Jay was undeterred. He sat down on the armrest beside Lloyd and skimmed over the first paragraph on the page, mumbling quietly to himself. "The anatomy of the heart, eh?" He nodded, clearly pleased, and patted the teen's shoulder. "Neat. Did you ever consider being a doctor? Medical school would be a neat place to start a career."

Lloyd pointedly scooted as far from Jay as he could, which admittedly wasn't very far, since the recliner was so small. "We're too busy," he said. "Y'know, with those Nindroids on the loose and all that."

"Well, yeah," Jay shrugged. "But you should really start thinking about your future."

"Oh," Lloyd laughed sarcastically. "You mean like what you did with Nya, getting her pregnant so that she is utterly _useless _in battle?" What was with that last part? Was he really that upset with Jay?

Apparently so.

Jay's smile fell. He spoke in a low tone, even though there was no one around to hear them; Cole and Nya were cooking dinner in the other room. "What's wrong?" He asked. "I had no idea you were so bitter about me and Nya."

Lloyd slammed the book shut. "I don't even know," he answered. "It's just...you're not yourself, Jay. Nya changed you."

Jay sat back, pulling up one leg up to rest on the arm of the chair. "I know it wasn't smart of me, what I did with Nya," he said after a long moment of silence. "And, to tell you the truth, I wish I hadn't done it at all. You're right; she is an important part of the team, and I stole her away."

Lloyd examined his older friend's face, gauging his seriousness. "You...don't want the baby?" He asked.

Jay started. "No!" He exclaimed. "I-I mean, yes. I do want little Wren. I want him with all of my heart. I just wish that we would've waited until after the enemy was defeated to have him."

"Regardless, you're still more immature than I'd like," Lloyd said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jay asked.

Lloyd stood up, book under his arm. "It means that I'm going to sit on my bed and study in silence," he said.

Jay opened his mouth to retort, then faltered. "Are you...jealous?" He asked softly.

Lloyd hesitated. Was that it? Was he jealous? "Maybe," he admitted.

"Maybe?" Jay repeated, standing. "Of what? Nya?"

Lloyd felt his face flush. "No," he said. "Not her."

Jay stared into Lloyd's eyes, disbelieving. He pointed at himself. "You...are jealous of me?"

Lloyd slapped his forehead with the heel of his hand. "Why don't you drag my mother into this, while you're at it?" He glared at Jay. "No! Don't be gross and weird."

"Then what are you jealous of?" Jay asked.

Lloyd gestured to Jay. "You both, I guess," he admitted. "I...I want what you two have."

"Which is what?" Jay prompted.

Lloyd turned his back to Jay and stride from the room, pausing for just a moment at the door. "I...I'm not sure. Happiness?"

He bolted away without another word, running down the hall and into the bedroom. He locked the door behind him, stubbornly ignoring Jay's voice as he tried to call the teen back.

Once inside, Lloyd slumped down on his bed with a crinkle of paper and-

Wait. Paper?

Lloyd stood and picked up a crumpled piece of notepaper from where he had been sitting. "What's this?" He mumbled. He skimmed the page.

_Greetings, brothers. Kai and I are going on a trip. Our sincerest apologies for the short notice. _

_Please don't try to find us. We will be back within the week. _

_Yours truly, _

_Zane._

* * *

Zane hefted his pack higher on his shoulders as he trudged through the snow. The sun was getting low on the horizon, glittering pink and orange on the surface of the fresh snow blanket.

"We should set up camp," Kai said, breath rising in a cloudy puff. "It'll be dark soon."

Zane stopped walking. He sighed. Traveling with Kai slowed him down. If Zane had gone alone, he would be walking through the night to get to his old home in the Birchwood Forest. He was a Nindroid; he could go for days without rest. But with Kai, they had needed to stop every night to rest.

Zane never let Kai on to the fact that he was slowing him down, of course. So he pretended to be tired too, just to make sure that Kai didn't feel bad.

"Sure," Zane said finally. He dropped his pack. "Start a fire. I'll set up the tent."

Wordlessly, Kai nodded. He set his pack next to Zane's and shimmied up a white birch to cut some branches.

Zane rummaged through his pack until he found the bag that held the tent. He carefully unrolled the contents and began to put the puzzle together.

By the time he was finished, Kai had gathered several armfuls of sticks and was preparing them for the fire.

"How are you feeling, Zane?" Kai asked as he got to his knees next to his fire pit. "It's day two of being smoke-free. Anything you want to talk about?"

Zane threw his open pack into the white tent and growled softly. "I have a headache," he said. "And I really want to strangle something."

Kai nodded. "I know I've said this before, but I'm sorry. I shouldn't have cut it out of your system so suddenly. I just thought that since I..." He trailed off, embarrassed.

Zane crossed his arms with a frown. "You just thought that since you survived being cut so suddenly, I could do it too?" He finished.

Kai scratched his chin, which had a few days worth of brownish stubble on it. "Yeah. That was kind of dumb. No offense, but you're less stable than I was when I quit. It would have been best to siphon the drug out of your system slowly. Sorry."

Zane grunted. "Get that fire started. I'm done talking to you." He turned and walked into the woods, one hand on the pommel of his sword.

The sun was almost set. Everything was in shadows, and a few of the birds brave enough to weather the cold chirped affably. Wind blew through the ever-bare branches of the birches.

"Where are you going?" Kai called out.

"For a walk!" Zane shouted back.

Kai sighed and shook his head. He had forgotten how bad the nicotine withdrawals could be, especially for a guy who had come to rely on them to keep himself from having emotional breakdowns. _Just give Zane a few minutes, _he told himself. _He needs some time to cool off. _

He aimed a large flame from his palm at his branches, instantly setting them ablaze._ I wonder where Zane is going, _he mused. _He had his hand on his sword, like he was going to draw it. But why would he be drawing his sword? I don't think there's any enemies around. Unless... _His face grew pale. _Unless he's going to hurt himself!_

Kai leapt to his feet and, breathing fast, followed Zane's tracks. "Please, Zane," he whispered as he ran. "Don't do this."

The snow reflected what little light there was, making it easy to find Zane, who was hardly a hundred feet from the camp.

Kai's breath caught in his throat. "No..." He saw Zane face-down in the snow, sword through his chest. The dim lighting made his skin look black.

He was not moving.

"No!" Kai came closer, tears hot on his cold cheeks. He dropped to his knees and rolled the body face-up.

Confusion. That's the first thing that hit him once he saw the body's face.

"Hold on..." Kai squinted in the dim light, then began to laugh through the sobs.

The body was not Zane's. It belonged to one of the evil Nindroids, with their black skin and dead red eyes.

_My paranoia is a little bit unhealthy, _Kai thought as he stood, wiping the tears from his eyes. _Zane must have sensed danger, and went into the woods to kill this scout._

"Kai!" A voice hissed to his right.

He turned to see Zane, crouched low behind a large birch. "Zane!" He whisper-shouted. "What is this?"

Zane held a finger to his lips, then gestured for Kai to come to him.

One hand on his sword, Kai ran to Zane's side and crouched beside him. "Don't ever scare me like that again," he said softly. "I thought that was your body."

Zane's answer was clipped and terse. "My body will be next if you give away our position."

Kai winced. He did not like Angry Zane. "Sorry," he whispered. "So what's out there? More scouts?"

"How about the entire army?" Zane's eyes were cold as he glared at the body of the Nindroid a few short feet away. "After months of trying to find their hideout, here it is. And it's only about a mile away from our camp. We need to get out of here before any more scouts find us."

"More?" Kai felt his blood run cold. "How many do you think already know we're here?"

"There were three," Zane answered. "I killed that one, but the other two escaped."

Kai sighed softly. "So we need to pack up and leave," he said.

"We need to _run_," Zane corrected. "My father's house is still a couple of hours away. If we hurry, we can make it there before they find us."

Kai stood stiffly and offered Zane a hand. "Let go, then," he said. "As fast as we can."

* * *

**Hehe. Kai's got some major paranoia. It comes from reading all those books on depression**

**I'm very sorry about how unbalanced this fic is. I don't know what's wrong, I just haven't been feeling all that wind in my sails like I did for NJTWSIT2. I feel like I'm taking a bunch of random nonsense and stringing it together. Maybe it'll get better. **

**I am also sorry about how late this chapter was. I just had a lack of motivation. I finally forced myself to write this morning, and this is what came out. Ugh again. **

**Please review! I am shocked by how many reviews I've been getting lately; even more than True Grit, some weeks! How does that work? Keep it up! Please! :D **


End file.
